Purification
by Milaya Milen Zeal
Summary: 25 years ago, Joshua was told his city was corrupt by a powerful daiyoukai. Now the daiyoukai has returned to claim what he swore he would take from Joshua. DARK!NeJo Rated M for a reason! Complete with sequel "Wishes".
1. Stage 1 The Fear

_**Purification**_

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><p><strong>Fandom: <strong>The World Ends With You (TWEWY)

**Pairing: **Neku/Joshua

**Setting: **Post-game

**Summary: **25 years ago, Joshua was told his city was corrupt by a powerful daiyoukai. Now the daiyoukai has returned to claim what he swore he would take from Joshua.

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><p><strong><em>Stage 1 - The Fear<em>**

It was to the loud crack of thunder that Joshua awoke that night, shooting upright in an instant and struggling for breath. Another thunderous crack drew his attention to the window and to the water droplets that splattered against it and then trailed ever so slowly downward.

Panting, still, Joshua ran a hand through his hair, trying to calm himself by murmuring: "Just a dream… it was just a dream…"

But the words spoken in his 'dream' still echoed through his head even now…

_Your city is corrupt, Composer!_

When he could control his breathing again, he sighed in slight relief. 'It's fine… it's fine… He's dead now, anyway… He has no more power over me…'

As he lay back down, turning away from the window, he allowed another small sigh of relief before he shut his eyes.

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><p>"Ichi, ni, san, yon, go, roku, nana, hachi, kyuu… Heheh… Yes… they're all here…" murmured a soft, husky voice. "You had better prepare yourself, Composer… I'm coming for you…"<p>

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><p>When Joshua awoke that morning, he had not slept as well as he had hoped. He had snapped upright at least three more times before he had decided to just screw trying to sleep (since it was already 6 o' clock by the last time he awoke). Now he sat at WildKat's counter, sipping some coffee to try and wake up properly.<p>

"Rough night, boss?" Hanekoma asked with a small chuckle.

"Hmm… Something like that, you could say…" Joshua murmured, taking a long swig from his cup. "It's been exactly 25 years now…"

"Aaaah… Already, huh? Where does the time go sometimes, eh?"

Joshua chose not to respond.

25 years ago, Joshua had run into a Kyuubi no Kitsune-a Nintailed Fox-who had come to Shibuya with every intention of destroying it. Of course, Joshua, being the Composer, had not accepted that and had rushed to intercept the beast. How Joshua had not been defeated by the Kyuubi, he wasn't too sure, since it wasn't until their battle was well underway that Joshua remembered that the tails of foxes only split into multiples after they aged a hundred years.

Which would've made that fox at least over 800 years older than he had been at the time.

With a little help from Hanekoma, he had managed to defeat the Kyuubi, but all it had done upon being defeated was laugh. It laughed and laughed and then he had set himself on fire. As he burned up, he swore to Joshua that the Composer would come to see how corrupt Shibuya had become, and how the boy would seek out its aid to destroy the city himself once that time came. But that had not shocked Joshua as much as the last thing he had said…

_Remember this, Composer! Five years after you realize your city is corrupt, I'll come for you and I swear I'll **devour** you!_

Today marked 25 years since the fox had been burnt to a crisp, yes, but it also marked 5 years since Joshua had told Megumi he had been going to erase Shibuya… it was 5 years since Joshua realized that Shibuya had, indeed, been corrupted like the Kyuubi had claimed.

And this, for some reason, made a shiver run along Joshua's spinal cord and back down all the way to his toes.

"Chill, boss. He's dead. We saw him die right in front of us," Hanekoma said with a small wave of his hand. "He was probably just bitter over his loss and was trying to get you to start panicking."

"…Yeah. I guess you're right." Getting up after downing the rest of his coffee, Joshua dropped a few coins on the counter and headed for the door. "Well, I better get ready for the next Game tomorrow."

"You're gonna walk?"

"A little exercise never hurt anyone. Ja ne, Sanae."

"Later, Boss," Hanekoma said with a small salute.

Perhaps, if Hanekoma Sanae had known what was about to happen, he would've followed after Josh, but seeing as he didn't know, he saw no reason to worry and didn't notice the ominous shadow that trailed after the Composer.

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><p>As Joshua passed the Miyashita park, he paused, feeling another shudder rip along his spine. He was suddenly reminded of something during his week in the Reapers' Game with Neku after getting the tracker from Sanae.<p>

_"…hold on."_

_"Hm? Is something the matter, Neku?"_

_"…What's with that blue Noise?"_

_"Blue Noise?"_

Joshua knew from experience that Noise came in varying shapes and sizes, and he had been sure that there would never be a Noise that would give him pause.

But this one _had_.

"…Was that meant to scare me?" Joshua murmured softly to himself. "Well, that was quite the weak attempt if I do say so myself. Next time, try a little harder."

He allowed a small, mirthless chuckle as he started walking again.

**I'll keep that in mind… Hehehehe.**

Joshua immediately stopped walking, feeling as though a block of ice had just been dumped in his stomach. The chill slowly spread out to the rest of his body and he felt a lump rising to his throat and making it difficult for him to breathe. After he managed to swallow it back down, he cast his gaze to the ground, not missing how his very shadow was shaking… and even more when black, writhing 'snakes' appeared around his shadow.

**What's the matter, Composer? Aren't you going to turn around and face me?**

'Hell no!' Joshua's mind nearly screamed in horror as the situation began to fully dawn on him. Forcing the panic from his mind, Joshua bit his lip in an attempt to calm his racing heart. 'J-just ignore it… You're just imagining things… Keep walking…'

Tearing his eyes away from the ground, Joshua focused back on the path and started walking again.

**I know you can hear me, Composer!**

'Don't respond… Keep walking… Just ignore it…'

**If you think I'll go away if you don't respond, you're _horribly_ mistaken!**

'…Screw it!' Joshua's mind cried out as he spotted the 'snakes' rushing for him and took off on a run, before he switched frequencies and used his wings to fly away as fast as he could.

**YOU CAN RUN, COMPOSER! BUT YOU CAN'T HIDE FROM ME!**

Joshua ignored the voice in favor of flying back to the Shibuya River. He had to get to the Room of Reckoning… it was the only place where he was sure he'd be safe.

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><p>"Hahaha… Run run run, lil Composer… You can't escape me; I <em>always<em> get what I want," said the same, husky voice from before. "I'll get you… one way or another!"

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><p>Joshua was <em>so<em> glad that there was no one at Dead God's Pad at that specific time to see him running in all flustered and out of breath. When he arrived, he immediately ran through the doors that lead the way to the Room of Reckoning, slamming the doors shut and into the lock as he went, though he doubted he could somehow stop his pursuer from chasing him if it was persistent enough, before he almost stumbled over his own feet as he ran down the hall.

Finally, he staggered into the room, and he almost collapsed to his knees as he panted for breath. 'I should be okay here… There's no way he…'

"**Welcome 'home', Composer,**" crooned a voice that seemed to reverberate through the room, and Joshua felt his blood freeze.

Slowly, Joshua raised his head to meet the eyes of the creature that he knew was there…

Its body was long and sleek, but each of its limbs held enough power to crush a grown man's bones without any effort, it had to be at least a head taller than Sanae, its elongated ears were raised and aimed at him, while nine long, powerful tails swayed behind it, its dark bluish-black eyes watching Joshua with a cold, icy smirk.

"K-Kyuubi…" Joshua choked out, taking a step back as he could only stare at the creature that had splayed itself out over his throne.

"**Did you _really_ expect to shake me off so easily?**" the large fox queried as it uncoiled from the throne and slowly stepped down the set of stairs before it. "**I told you; you can run, but you can't escape from me.**"

"H-how did you even-I-I saw you die!" Joshua choked out.

"**Oh, _that_? That was just something I learned from an old friend at one point… 'Phoenix Fire', was what she called it,**" said the fox with a cheeky grin on its face.

Joshua wasn't aware he could feel any colder than he had when he had first heard the Kyuubi's voice, but what he felt at that point definitely felt like it was that much colder. If this 'Phoenix Fire' move did what he think it did, then the Kyuubi had fooled him and Sanae into thinking they had won, while in truth, the beast had been merely gathering its strength. It had given them a false sense of security only to jump up from behind and to strike without them noticing.

He didn't dare to speak as the nine-tailed fox stopped just at the foot of the steps. The fox's orange-red fur was adorned by pale silver and black symbols that Joshua didn't recognize, and his claws were large and intimidating. The Kyuubi seriously looked like he was about to jump at him and cut him to ribbons any second.

The fox chuckled softly then, as he shifted his stance just slightly. "**So… Composer… You know why I'm here, don't you?**"

Somehow, Joshua really wasn't sure how, he managed to regain his cool as he considered how to answer the question. But finally, he answered simply with: "Hmm… I can't say I do. Care to enlighten me?"

"**Do _NOT _play me for a fool, Composer!**" the fox roared out, and Josh had to commend himself for not jumping in surprise. "**I know what you did! I know about the Game you played with your Conductor!**"

The fact that Joshua managed to keep a straight face should've definitely been worth several dozen achievement points, since he surely didn't feel as sure of himself as he was trying to make the other believe. He wanted to swallow the lump in his throat to talk normally, but the fox would notice and would probably see right through him with it. Then again, what wouldn't it see through?

"Oh? So I'm not permitted to play a Game of my own choosing every now and again?" Joshua asked simply, and he was glad he could talk normally now. "Now that's harsh."

"**Oh? And killing a child to aid you in destroying Shibuya without ever asking him anything is not harsh?**"

Now that time Joshua failed to hold in his look of surprise. He didn't know why he was that surprised, though, since the Kyuubi had obviously done its homework on the Game he had played with Megumi five years ago.

"**You know why I'm here, Composer…**" the Kyuubi said slowly, its mouth moving into a grin. "**You know _exactly_ why I came here…**"

Of course he knew; Joshua just didn't want to admit that he did. The Kyuubi had sworn that it'd devour Joshua before long, and the thought alone scared him. After all, when a Composer was killed by anything other than a Player, if no new Composer arose within three days, their city would simply disappear. After all the trouble he had gone through five years ago with that Game, he could not allow a mere youkai to take his city away. He ignored the voice in the back of his mind saying that this was no 'mere' youkai, and spoke defiantly.

"So you still claim that Shibuya is corrupt? And you want to take it out on me now? Isn't that just… a little childish?"

"**Shibuya is not corrupt.**"

The fox's words took him by surprise. He had expected a lot of things from the daiyoukai, but this wasn't one of them.

"**Not anymore. I'm impressed that you actually managed to save this sorry excuse of a city… though the path you took to reach that goal…**" The Kyuubi didn't bother to finish what it was saying as its face split into a truly demonic grin that almost had Joshua visibly shaking in his shoes.

The words that came from the fox's mouth then could only spell out disaster for Joshua and possibly all of Shibuya.

"**Shall we play a game?**"

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><p><strong>AN: This is a story I occasionally started on as I was traveling back and forth from work. Right now, it's still rather light, but this tale is going to get a very dark tint to it soon enough. This is rated M for a reason.**

**Originally I was planning to make this into a single chapter story, but it turned out to be much longer than I expected, so I'm chopping it up into parts. I have several other stages ready, though I still have to reread them a few times, so the next stages might be up soon enough.**


	2. Stage 2 The Game

_**Purification**_

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><p><strong><em>Stage 2 - The Game<em>**

"A… game?" Joshua questioned incredulously.

"**A game,**" the demon fox confirmed. "**That's what you do, isn't it? You play games and decide the fates of the souls who dare to play them if they lose.**"

Though Joshua was a bit ticked at having the Reaper's Game described as nothing more than a source of entertainment for him, it wouldn't be wise to mess with a youkai that could just as easily bite his head off. Besides, this could actually work in his favor. He _never_ lost a game. Ever.

"What kind of game?"

The fox still grinned icily as one of its tails lashed out at the air like a whip, several strands of silver hair shooting from its tail - and then a pure silver katana drilled itself into the ground just inches away from Joshua's foot.

"**Simple; it's merely a small game of skill,**" said the Kyuubi as its shape began to grow smaller, until it was roughly the same height as Joshua, its body almost humanoid as it stood on its hindlegs, before a dark kimono materialized on its body and a white kitsune mask, adorned by red and black wavy lines, appeared on its face as it seemed to turn fully humanoid, except for the ears and tails. One of its tails moved over and it used one arm to pull loose a blade that had nine hooks attached to it, making it look even more dangerous than the blade already was. "**He who immobilizes the other first, wins. If you win, I'll leave and you'll never see me again. But if I win, I'll do as I promised and _devour_ you!**"

Joshua knew he had no real choice if he wanted Shibuya to stay safe, so he wordlessly took the katana in his hands. It was a little heavy, but he had expected that; there was no way the Kyuubi was going to make this easy on him. He knew better than to complain though, and simply brought up the blade.

"Fine. Let's play then."

"**Hehe… Game start!**"

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><p>The Kyuubi was good, that much was clear; it handled that blade with ease as though it weighed next to nothing, and Joshua would not be surprised if it didn't. The fox would lash out with well-aimed swings that could easily slice off his head if the youkai had been trying. Joshua himself wasn't as proficient with a blade, but he knew enough to be able to block the fox's attacks and keep the blade in his hands. However, the sheer ferocity of the Kyuubi's assault didn't provide him with much opportunity to attack in return.<p>

And suddenly he was forced to jump back when one of the daiyoukai's tails came out of nowhere. Joshua lashed out at the powerful limb, making the fox pull its tail away.

"Foul play. Using your tails is against the rules."

However, Kyuubi merely smirked.

"**Is it now? Did I ever say what was allowed and what wasn't? This is a game of _skill_, Composer! If you want to win, then come at me with all you've got!**"

And then four of the fox's tails were coming at him from all angles, and Joshua did the first thing that came to mind. He brought up one hand and launched a beam of silvery-white energy to deflect the tails as they rushed for him. And then he had to backpedal to avoid a lash that would've sliced right through his skin. Instead, now it only ripped through his shirt, which was a minor problem.

'He's right… He never _did_ say what's allowed in this game and what isn't. All he said is that it's a game of skill…' As that thought registered with Joshua, though, a small smirk played on his face. 'Well, fine. If that's how you want to play, then that's how we'll play.'

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><p>Joshua might've been several centuries younger than the Kyuubi, but there was no way he was going to go down without a fight. Once the Kyuubi had revealed that using skills other than those with a blade weren't prohibited, Joshua was pulling out everything he had and was actually standing on equal footing with the powerful youkai. But he knew that that wouldn't be enough to deal with the demon, meaning he had to finish this quick.<p>

Using another burst of energy to deflect the tails, Joshua rushed in and managed to grab the daiyoukai by the neck with his free hand and force him down to the ground with a yowl.

"Got you!" Joshua roared out, rearing back his arm with the blade to stab forward-

"A-agh… J-Josh…u…a…"

Joshua froze when he realized that what he was pinning down wasn't a nine-tailed fox, but an all too familiar boy (young man by now) with red, spiky hair and deep blue eyes that were starting to glaze over from lack of oxygen, dressed in the usual dark purple clothes of J&M as the man's hands clawed at his arm.

"Can't… breathe…"

"Ne-Neku…? Shit!" Joshua hissed, quickly jumping back and releasing the boy's neck to allow him to breathe.

As the redhead pushed up on the ground, nursing his neck and gasping and choking for breath, Joshua looked to his right hand, in which he had been holding he katana up until a moment ago, but now he was holding only air. One look around the room also confirmed that the Kyuubi he had just been fighting was nowhere to be found.

"What the hell, Josh?" Neku exclaimed suddenly, making Joshua look over to the boy in surprise. "You drag me all the way over here just to kill me _again_? What's your problem?"

'Wait… what…?' Joshua couldn't recall bringing Neku to the Room of Reckoning at all. He just remembered the Kyuubi trying to kill him. Or was that…?

"…Sorry," Joshua said sincerely (he really hadn't been planning to kill Neku again, after all) as he held out his hand to the redhead.

Neku looked up to Joshua with fiery blue eyes that could've killed a lesser man, but reached out with his left hand anyway to grab hold of Joshua's hand and allow the silverette to pull him up. Once back on his feet, he dusted off for a moment, as Joshua looked around the room one more time.

'…He's not here…' Joshua frowned. 'Did I just…?'

"…Josh? …Oy! Joshua!"

The Composer jumped in surprise at the shout and turned around to face Neku. "Oh, sorry. Yes?"

"What the heck's up with you?" Neku asked with a deep frown (which wasn't that strange for Neku). "What're you looking at?"

After a moment of contemplation, Joshua merely smirked and said whilst giggling: "Oh, nothing serious, dear," ignoring Neku's "Don't call me that!" as he continued, "just thought there was a little fox around trying to mess with my head."

"Hm? A Kitsune, you mean?" Neku asked with a raised eyebrow, fiddling with his bangs for a moment.

"Quite. But it seems I was mistaken. Oh well," Joshua said calmly as he started walking to his throne.

"…hey, Josh, aren't you forgetting something?" Neku asked suddenly.

"Hmm? Like what?" Joshua asked without looking back.

Big mistake…

Neku's presence was suddenly right behind him and the redhead murmured something into Joshua's ear that made the Composer freeze in his tracks;

"Kitsune are shape shifters."

Joshua immediately spun around, but it was already too late as four powerful tails wound around his arms and legs and easily lifted him up, keeping him suspended in midair before he had the chance to do anything.

"Got. You," Neku's voice said cheekily, but when Joshua looked at Neku's face, it looked little like the face of the Proxy he was used to.

Black eye shadow shrouded his eyes, making his eyes seem both darker and more slanted than they actually were, and the pupils had shifted into vertical slits. From his hair came two long, fur-lined ears, and his dark purple clothes had made place for a black and silver kimono. The exact same one the Kyuubi had been wearing earlier when he had seen it.

And from under that came nine powerful fox tails, four of which were currently busy with keeping Joshua up.

"…You bastard…" Joshua snarled out. 'He changed into Neku to confuse me and get an opening… dammit! How dare he!'

"Ooh, harsh. Very harsh, Joshua," said the Ninetails with Neku's voice, a small, cheeky smile playing along his lips. "Though in all honesty, after what you put _me_through five years ago, I'm permitted to be a total bastard once every now and then, don't you agree?"

Joshua felt his blood freeze at those words. The implication of those words came to him easily, but he honestly didn't want to believe what his mind was telling him. "Wha… What are you talking about?"

The Kitsune sighed heavily. "Is it so hard to understand? But fine." He reached up and down the front of his kimono, before pulling out a thin, silver chin that seemed to glow with a mysterious light. "You remember this thing, right?"

Joshua's eyes were the size of saucers when what the daiyoukai produced was a single, glowing, silver feather connected to the silver chain he had first pulled out. Of course he remembered that feather… he had given it to… to…

"How… w-where did you?"

"You don't remember? You gave it to me. Remember?"

"I didn't give it to you! I gave it to the Neku of-"

"The other world, ne?"

Joshua's eyes widened when the Kyuubi finished what he was about to say, a cold, but pleased smirk playing along his face. "H-how did you…?"

"Ah, _that_, I'm afraid, is a private little secret. All you need to know… I played your little Game, I played your silly little 'boss rush', I played by your rules for over 5 years now. Over, and over, and over…" Tucking the feather back under the cloth, the Kitsune smirked cheekily. "Didn't I tell you when we last met? You'd see Shibuya was corrupted and when you would decide to destroy it, you'd seek me out."

When Joshua's mind had fully registered those words, he paled in horror. He tried to speak, but he couldn't get the words he wanted to out. After a few failed attempts, though, he finally managed to work his voice. "You were playing me from the start, weren't you?"

The Ninetails had "reincarnated" himself as a human, posing as an antisocial kid born and raised in Shibuya, while his power leaked out of him in the shape of Imagination. And that was exactly what had drawn Joshua to Neku to play his Game…

No wait…

That was what had drawn Joshua to the Ninetails…

Sakuraba Neku… had most likely never existed.

"Actually… no," the Kyuubi—Neku-said calmly, reaching out with one finger and using the overly long nail to tilt Joshua's face a little closer. "I couldn't have you finding me too early, after all, so I sealed my powers away. Silly me, though, I sealed my memory away as well." The Kitsune allowed a small smirk as he continued with: "Which might be why I was fighting so hard for a city I could've cared less about 2.000 years ago."

If Joshua could go any paler, he probably would've. He knew the Kyuubi had to have been at least over 900 years old to reach the Ninetails status, but he had not expected him to be _that_old.

"Speaking of seals, though…" the redhead said suddenly, his smirk expanding into a grin. "I'm a little surprised you're not complaining about the one I put on _you_."

When Neku spoke those words and pointed to his right (Joshua's left), Joshua gasped and snapped his head to the left to stare at his left wrist. Even with the tail that still kept him up, he could see the black magatama-like markings that circled his wrist. It wasn't a seal he recognized, but he could guess what it was for. And, sure enough, when he tried to summon some of his energy into his limbs, he felt nothing. The energy refused to center on him, even if Joshua could still feel it running through his body.

"…you son of a…!"

"Ah-ah, let's refrain from using _that_ particular line, shall we?" Neku quipped as he clicked Joshua's mouth shut with his thumb and forefinger. "We Kitsune take that insult rather personal, alright?"

Joshua had to resist the urge to snarl, as he strained his muscles to try and break the hold Neku had on him with his tails, but the Kyuubi's limbs would not let him go. And after a long futile struggle, Joshua came to a horrifying conclusion;

He had lost, and Neku had him right where he wanted him.

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><p><strong>AN: Some of you might be wondering; "Neku as a Kyuubi/Ninetails? Where'd you get that idea?" From the Fox Noises in TWEWY, actually. They sometimes change into Neku with a fox mask on, and I've always been wondering about that, which got me thinking, which eventually led to this story.**

**Anyway, things start to get darker next chapter, so if you don't want to see that, I suggest you cut off right now and find something lighter.  
><strong>


	3. Stage 3 The Feast

_**Purification**_

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><p><em><strong>Stage 3 - The Feast<strong>_

Joshua sighed dramatically against Neku's fingers, still on his mouth, before moving his head back and saying in a bored tone of voice: "Alright, Neku. You win."

"I know," Neku chuckled out, placing one hand on his hip, the grin on his face making some of his razor sharp teeth poke out over his lip.

While Joshua was putting on his best "brave face", he was scared of what was sure to come now. Neku had been quite clear in what he wanted as a prize if he won, and without any of his powers or any Reapers to aid him, let alone Sanae, there was no way for him to get out of this situation. He was actually glad that Neku held him so tightly; since that could potentially mask his shaking limbs, though Joshua was sure he already knew anyway.

"Neku, before you, as you say, 'devour' me… there's one thing I need to know…"

"Hm? What would that be?" Neku asked curiously with his head tilted to the side.

Joshua took a moment to gather what remained of his courage to ask the question he had been dreading to ask for a while now.

"What will you do with Shibuya?"

Once the question had been asked, he got a reaction he hadn't been expecting from the Kitsune; Neku looked at him with a confused expression on his face, before he asked: "How does Shibuya fit into the equation?"

Joshua resisted the urge to glare at Neku. He had to be doing this on purpose, _had_ to be. Rather than display his irritation (not to mention his fear), however, he gave another annoyed sigh.

"Isn't that obvious? If you eat me, this city will no longer have a Composer."

"Where did you… waaaaiiit a minute…" Joshua didn't like the smirk that formed on the Kyuubi's face. "You… actually thought… I was gonna gobble you up?" Neku managed to get out before he burst into a fit of laughter.

No, Joshua did NOT like where this was going…

"Am I missing something, then?" he asked slowly and he was glad his voice didn't shake.

Neku was finally able to calm his laughter enough to look at Joshua, though he still kept a hand to his mouth to stifle the remaining chuckles. "Josh, Josh, Josh…" the redhead said slowly, stepping closer to the silverette without moving the Composer an inch. "I'm disappointed… I would've expected you to at least get the meaning of what I said."

"Wh… what's there to misunderstand?" Joshua asked slowly, a sense of dread creeping up on him.

Neku chuckled softly, bringing up one hand and running the long nails over the side of Joshua's face, making Joshua attempt to move away. Not that there was much room to move away, mind you.

"Silly, silly Composer…" Neku crooned, running his nails down the side of his face before entangling the digits into his hair. "I'm not going to eat you… I wouldn't even dream of it."

"…but you said…"

"I said I would 'devour' you… I never said anything about eating you."

Nope. Joshua didn't like how this was working out, _at all_.

"…I… I don't… I don't under-"

But Neku didn't allow Joshua to finish, as he suddenly curled his fingers into the Composer's hair and pulled his head down, smashing their mouths together with almost enough force to bruise the boy's lips. The silverette gasped sharply in surprise at that, but he forgot about the fact that Neku's mouth covered his own. The sharp inhalation was enough for the Kyuubi to force his tongue (far too long to belong to a human) into the other's mouth.

When the shock had passed, though, Joshua wanted to bite down and force the Kyuubi back, but his mouth wouldn't close again. Distantly, he was aware of a pain in his left wrist, but the feeling of Neku's tongue moving around and round inside his mouth made him forget all about that. The lack of oxygen left him lightheaded, and he'd like to blame that for not putting more effort into moving away, or the stirring in his loins.

Finally, Neku moved back again, running his long tongue along Joshua's lips one more time before looking up at him with a lazy smirk stretched over his face.

"Now then… care to guess again, Composer?"

'…oh…shit…'

Joshua couldn't speak; he didn't dare. He was now struck with an all-new terror be had never known in his life, and it left him staring at Neku in horror.

The Kyuubi allowed a slow chuckle that made Joshua tremble in fright. "Good. Now that we're finally on the same wavelength… let's have some fun, shall we?"

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><p>Joshua wanted to scream, wanted to cry, to punch, or just do <em>something<em>, but Neku's tails allowed him no movement whatsoever and his voice refused to work the way it should the moment Neku raked his nails over his clothed chest. The Kyuubi's fingers undid the buttons of his shirt slowly, the nails ghosting over his bare chest making him hiss as his breath came out in fast, uneven gasps.

"…st…stop…"

But if he heard them, then Neku chose to ignore his words entirely, and merely ran the tips of his fingers along the Composer's pale flesh. The redhead smiled slowly, wetting his lips briefly, before he moved forward and ran the wet appendage along Joshua's collarbone, drawing a long moan from the silverette.

"…n-no… Ne-Neku… s-stop… please…"

Neku hummed absently as he nibbled on Joshua's throat, moving up to lick along the shell of his ear. "Stop?" he murmured softly. "I barely started… besides; I won our little 'game', so I'm claiming my prize, ne?"

At the last word, Neku pinched Joshua's nipples, one with his fingertips, the other with his nails, making Joshua howl out as he instinctively arched his back. The fox chuckled softly as he rolled the two nubs between his fingers, before he spoke again.

"Besides, you're enjoying this just as much."

"L-like I would…" Joshua gasped out.

"Oh really?" The Composer would never admit that, when one of Neku's tails came up and _rubbed_ against him just then, he squeaked. "Your body says you're lying…"

"Ne-Neku… please…"

But the redhead merely chuckled. "Now _that_ word I intend to make you say over and over…" he murmured, dipping his head down to Joshua's chest. Joshua whined when the Kyuubi ran his tongue across his left nipple, his left hand still playing with the other one, twisting and pulling. He was having difficulty breathing, let alone wriggle away from Neku as his tails started running across his skin.

The tails restraining his legs were moving to undo his shoelaces and remove both shoes and socks, tossing them aside to be forgotten, all while his fifth tail continued pushing and rubbing against his cock, making Joshua whimper as he fought against the waves of pleasure that shot up his spinal cord and made his toes curl up.

"Aaahh… so annoying…"

**_Riiiiiiiiiip_**

Joshua choked as Neku ripped away both his shirt and his pants, leaving him only in his briefs and causing him to tremble for more than one reason.

"Why is it that humans make clothing more and more restrictive with every decade?" Neku murmured with an annoyed scowl on his face, his nails running across Joshua's chest, descending downward ever so slowly.

'N-no…' Joshua struggled against the tails holding him as Neku's fingers reached his waist. 'No…! Goddammit NO!'

Before Joshua even knew what he was doing, he had managed to pull loose his hand and lunged with a shout-socking Neku to his jaw and forcing the Kyuubi to back up with a yowl.

For a long moment, neither of the two moved; Joshua because he was surprised that he had somehow managed to land a punch, and Neku because Joshua had been able to get one of his hands free from the grip he had on his limbs.

But that didn't last long, as Neku's eyes narrowed dangerously and a furious snarl rumbled from his throat. It wasn't until then that Joshua realized what he'd done and the consequences this would have.

"You little **_brat!_**" Neku practically roared out. "I was going to be lenient on you this time but you just HAD to make it harder on yourself, didn't you?"

'Shit… should not have done that!'

But Joshua's realization came too late as Neku's tails grabbed his arms and legs with more force than before and a fifth tail coiled around his waist, forcing him to coil backwards until he was facing the ceiling, and then there was another deafening rip of fabric as Neku removed the last barrier of clothes that had still been left on Joshua. The Composer felt his entire body tremble as he tried to move in some way, but Neku's tails tightened their grip until it was painful, forcing Joshua to still.

"Neku, please wait!" Joshua choked out before he howled as one tail smacked his ass, _hard_.

"Shut up! You brought this on yourself, so you have only yourself to blame!" Neku snarled out angrily. "I was going to be nice for once… but that's obviously not what you want. So, I'll just go ahead and put another seal on you."

Though a little confused at first, Joshua soon realized what Neku meant and paled. "N-no…! Please wait…!" he choked out as the seal formed on Neku's palm

"Too late." Neku's words were cold and direct, even as he reached out and grabbed hold of Joshua's member with such a firm grip that Joshua let out a cry of pain. The redhead watched solemnly as the seal moved from his palm to Joshua's skin to coil around the base of the Composer's cock. Neku allowed a slow, evil grin as he unfolded his hand and used the tips of all five fingers to stroke Joshua's need. He hummed almost absently as he continued moving his hand, listening to Joshua's pants and whimpers. "Hmmm… That looks very nice on you, Joshua…" he murmured, briefly licking his lips. "Now then… Let's see if it holds, shall we?"

That was all the warning Joshua got before he gave a cry when Neku's tongue ran all the way from the base to the tip of his cock, then swirled around the head lazily. Joshua whimpered as Neku kept on running his tongue over his cock, sometimes even nibbling on the head with his fangs.

And then Neku wrapped his lips around Joshua's member and dipped his head down.

Joshua might've screamed, but honestly, the Composer couldn't be bothered to care about that. All he was aware of was Neku's mouth moving over his member, applying a hot, wet suction that sent waves of pleasure ripping through his spinal cord, his toes curling and his fingers trying to claw at something, _anything_, for support. His breath was coming out as nothing but pants and gasps as Neku gave a chuckle that made him whine unhappily.

'Th-this is ba-bad… I have to-' "Oh _god!_" Joshua cried out as Neku's tongue grazed a particularly sensitive spot. With that first exclamation out of the way, Joshua started whimpering and whining as Neku did not let up, sucking even harder and moving his head up and down faster and faster.

Neku's eyes glinted evilly as he sucked long and hard on the head of Joshua's cock, feeling the Composer's entire body tremble in his grip. He knew what the silverette's body wanted, and he also knew that the second seal he had placed on the Composer wouldn't allow it to happen;

It would not allow Joshua to come.

And when he heard a frustrated whimper come from Joshua's throat, he knew that the silverette had discovered that as well.

"N-Nek-uuuu…"

He smirked (as best as he could with his mouth full), but didn't make a move to say anything to the boy. Instead, he gave a relatively stronger suck, sticking his tongue into the slit, making Joshua cry out.

"N-Ne-Neku…" Joshua whimpered. "P…please… I… I need… Ah!"

Neku smirked as he nibbled lightly on the spot where he'd lightly sunk one of his fangs into Joshua's sensitive flesh.

"Need? I don't think you've done anything to _deserve_ that yet," he murmured thoughtfully after giving Joshua one last lick and pulling away. He chose not to move away, however, and instead brought up his hand again to lightly stroke his fingers along the other's length, watching the precum gathering at the tip. "As fun as that would be, you have yet to deserve it, _Yoshiya_."

Joshua whimpered as his cock twitched at the mere mention of his given name. If not for Neku's seal, Joshua would've come from just that. As it was, though, his cock throbbed almost painfully from being denied release.

"Oh but don't worry; I'll make sure you'll deserve it," Neku murmured, his presence suddenly right below him and breathing in his ear. "Even if it takes all. Damn. Night."

Joshua tensed and couldn't help but gulp. He had a feeling that this was going to be a long night.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Yeah... Neku's being a bit of a bastard, and it's only going to get worse. Last warning; don't like where this is going, get out now.  
><strong>


	4. Stage 4 The Dark

_**Purification**_

* * *

><p><strong><em>Stage 4 - The Dark<em>**

"Sanae."

Hanekoma blinked curiously, and looked over. "Boss? I thought you were…"

"Oh, I was," the silverette chuckled out, before he gave a sigh and raised his arms in a small shrug. "Unfortunately, I seem to have hit a snag. Hate to say so, but I need some assistance to make this work."

Hanekoma chuckled. "A'ight. You're the boss, Boss."

The silver-haired youth who had stolen both Joshua's voice and face smirked cheekily, amethyst eyes sparking in amusement. Sanae never noticed the difference between the copy and the original, so there was no way he could know just what horrors Joshua was going through at that exact moment.

* * *

><p>"Comfy?" Neku asked with a small chuckle, which was answered by a muffled jumble of words that could mean anything, though Neku could guess the actual meaning.<p>

Since he really hadn't been feeling up to keep standing for much longer, Neku had teleported both himself and Joshua to a more "private" spot. It was a pretty dark room, with only a few blood red candles to light the room, which didn't even show all that much, save for the wide, round bed in the very center. The bed itself had four posts, two on one side and two on the opposite. Which were currently being used to keep Joshua in place, a number of red "ropes", made entirely out of the fur from Neku's tails, tying his wrists to the posts. And to finish the "bound" look, Neku had also stuffed a gagball in between Joshua's teeth to shut him up. Hence the muffled response to his earlier question.

Neku chuckled at the dirty look Joshua shot him, before he slowly dragged his nails across Joshua's skin, grinning at the muffled whimpers Joshua let out.

"So sensitive… I'd almost say this was your first time…" he murmured absently, though he wasn't prepared for the sudden flinch that followed shortly after those words were spoken. He paused his ministrations for a moment, then allowed a slow, evil smirk. "Oh? Is something wrong, _Composer_?"

Joshua's cheeks turned red and the ageless boy turned his head away pointedly, making Neku chuckle.

"So… I'm your first?" Neku crooned as he placed his fingertips on Joshua's chest and leaned forward to whisper in his ear. "In that case… let's make this last for as long as we can, ne?"

Joshua tensed, his heart rate speeding up to the point where he was sure it'd pop out of his chest soon. He tried to even out his breathing to prevent himself from hyperventilating, but just as he did, Neku began to lick along his throat, throwing any chances Joshua had had at calming down out the window. The Kitsune chuckled as he began to suck, quite hard, on the juncture between his throat and shoulder. That was sure to leave a bruise later.

Neku's hands, in the meantime, were busy running across the expanse of Joshua's chest, exploring every little bit of skin he could reach. Whenever he found a sensitive spot, Neku would pause for about a minute or two, teasing that specific area, enjoying the muffled cries and whimpers Joshua got out from behind the gagball.

Finally, though, Neku started moving further down with more than just his hands, dragging his tongue over Joshua's chest, pausing to lick and suck the pale boy's hardened nipples until they turned red, as well. Joshua twisted his head left and right with his eyes tightly shut in an attempt to get rid of the treacherous feelings coursing through him, but it was no use; Neku knew exactly what he was doing and where he had to be to make Joshua squirm.

The Kyuubi moved the pads of his fingers over the Composer's hipbone, following the slight curve he found there before going back up, lightly scraping the edge of his nails along the skin. As his fingers roamed over the skin, though, Neku used his mouth to trail a path ever downward, smiling quietly as Joshua's breathing picked up, the holes punctured through the gagball allowing him to breathe through his mouth, still, which he'd need at this point. Joshua tried to speak around the gagball, which sounded an awful lot like Neku's name, but the Kitsune merely smirked and nipped at his stomach, before dipping his tongue into Joshua's navel, drawing a startled yelp from the ageless boy beneath him.

"So responsive…" Neku purred softly, his deep blue eyes darkened with lust, even as a few of his tails moved swiftly to retrieve something from the shadows beneath the bed. "Makes me wonder… how you'd react to sound…"

Joshua blinked in confusion, but before he could (try to) ask, he let out a muffled wail as Neku once again took Joshua's need into his mouth, sucking long and hard as he bobbed his head up and down. He was actually glad right then for the gagball, because he didn't even _want_ to know what kind of sounds he'd make without it.

And then Neku moved back again and Joshua whined, as much as he hated to admit it.

"Do you know…" Neku spoke suddenly, pausing to lick away a trail of saliva from the corner of his mouth, "what the most sensitive spot is of your penis?"

Not sure where this was going, Joshua was almost afraid to answer, but he slowly shook his head in a negative answer anyway.

"Hmm… thought so." Neku sounded almost thoughtful as his tails moved about behind him. Then the redhead reached out with his hand and put the pads of his fingers on Joshua's cock, moving them from base to tip so agonizingly slow that Joshua whimpered. "Some people claim that it's the shaft, but others say that it's just on the underside…" Pause to rub the pad of his thumb over the aforementioned spot. "…and of course, those who are 'uncut' say that the head is most sensitive." Another pause to rub the forefinger over the slit and smearing precum over Joshua's cock. "However, there's a spot that's even more sensitive than any of those."

Neku held up his hand as one tail moved over and plucked a thin, metal rod from the much longer limb. The smirk that passed over the Kitsune's face just then was downright scary as he moved his body along Joshua's to whisper three words that made the ashen haired boy begin to panic.

"On the inside."

'Oh no… oh shit!' Joshua's eyes were the size of saucers as he started to struggle against his bonds with more force/desperation than before, even as Neku moved back again. When Neku touched his cock again, Joshua let out a muffled wail and bucked his body, trying to get out of Neku's grip.

Unfortunately, that failed miserably when Neku's tails shot out and wrapped themselves around his body, pinning him down.

"I suggest that you don't move," Neku said in a low, cold voice. "You're gonna feel it regardless, but I'm giving you the choice in how much pain you wish to endure." Joshua froze and stared at the Kyuubi in fear, but Neku's eyes showed no mercy. "And if you don't want to make this worse on yourself, I suggest you keep _still_."

Joshua's body trembled in fear. His breath was coming out in quick gasps for air, but he did as Neku said and kept still. He certainly didn't like it, but he didn't doubt that Neku would do what he planned to do whether Joshua was struggling or not. But despite that, he couldn't shake off his fear. Neku's wrath wasn't something he was too eager to test out any more than he already had at that point, since he had none of his powers as a Composer.

He had no choice but to go along with whatever Neku wanted if he wanted to make it out of this situation.

When Neku realized he was no longer going to struggle, the Kitsune allowed a small smirk, even as his fingertips ran over his member again, his tails moving away and releasing him. "Good boy," he cooed softly, before he used all five fingers to grip the head and brought forth his other hand. Joshua immediately shut his eyes and bit down on the gagball as hard as he could, fisting his hands so hard that his short nails threatened to draw blood.

Sadly, Joshua had forgotten that if you shut your eyes while you were still conscious, all other sense were heightened.

Because of that, when the thin rod of metal was placed against his head, right over the slit, Joshua felt it much stronger than he would've if he'd kept his eyes open. His muscles bunched together in alarm when he felt it slip inside and then continue further down and in, but he did his best not to move other than that. Neku's motions were merciless; he pushed it in without pause, and even if it was still a relatively slow pace, it hurt like _hell_! Nothing was supposed to go _in_ there!

He struggled against a scream/wail that sought to make its way out of his throat, even though he knew he was gagged. He also refused to believe that the moisture gathering at the corner of his eyes was the beginning of tears, blaming it instead on sweat rolling into his eyes.

And then it stopped and Joshua's body relaxed a tad. He allowed himself to breathe, if only for a moment, since he had no idea what came now. Though of course, he didn't actually _want_ to know.

Neku chuckled icily, and the sound made Joshua whimper softly from behind the gag. "Don't relax just yet, _Yo-shi-ya_," Neku whispered into his ear, punctuating every part of his name with a stroke of his fingers. "You're about to experience… just _how_ sensitive this section of your body is."

That was all the warning Neku gave before he pulled the rod back up, making Joshua whimper in pain as its dented surface moved along the inside of his cock. It was almost out, _almost_, and then Neku practically shoved it back down, the searing pain that followed ripping a muffled scream from Joshua's throat.

And this time there was no pause as Neku pulled it out and forced it back in over and over again. Joshua screamed and cried as he tried in vain to get away, but Neku's tails had come up to hold him down once again, keeping his lower body still while never once ceasing what he was doing.

And then Neku changed angle just slightly and Joshua's screams from behind the gagball changed from agonized to pleasured when a sudden jolt of unadulterated pleasure caused him to see stars and his back to arch up on its own accord for a brief moment.

"Aaahh, there we go… Found it," Neku chirped with a small, victorious chuckle, before he continued his motions at that angle.

Even through the gag, Joshua's cries and moans were perfectly audible and the silverette was finding it to be very difficult to breathe as the pain from a mere moment ago became overridden by nothing but raw pleasure. He couldn't stop himself from trying to buck his hips up in an attempt to get more of that feeling. But no matter how much pleasure coursed through him, Neku's seal prevented him reaching the release he so desperately wanted.

And then Neku stopped entirely, the rod firmly positioned against that spot that had nearly driven Joshua mad, and moved back. When Joshua whined pathetically, Neku chuckled and moved his body over Joshua's, reaching behind the ageless boy's head and clicking the gagball's strap loose to pull the object out of Joshua's mouth.

After Joshua coughed a few times for breath, Neku murmured: "See? That wasn't _so_ bad, was it?"

Joshua blinked wearily a few times, before he scowled at Neku, or tried to, at least, since it came out as a pathetic pout.

Neku actually chuckled as he moved forward to rest his arms on Joshua's chest, resting his head on his hands while looking to the Composer with a small, cheeky grin. "Aww, don't look at me like that. I'm sure you'll _love_ this next part."

"…there's more?" Joshua gasped out with a hint of dread.

Neku's only response was a small smirk as one of his tails moved to rummage under the bed again. "On a side note, Joshua… I'm safe to assume you know your way with music, ne?"

This couldn't be good…

Joshua slowly nodded his head, and Neku allowed a smirk.

"Good. Then… can you tell me what this is?" asked the Kyuubi as he brought forth one of his tails, which was holding a small object that Joshua recognized.

"…a tuning fork…" Joshua said slowly, not sure he was going to like where this would be going to.

"Very good… You also know what it's for?"

"…Why are you even asking me this?" Joshua choked out, before he answered the question in spite of himself. "A tuning fork is used to fine-tune instruments that use strings."

"Hmhmm… And how does it do that?"

"Why are you asking me this?" Joshua asked again.

"Humor me, ne?" Neku chuckled out casually.

Joshua knew he didn't like the mischievous glint in Neku's eyes, and he knew that, for whatever reason Neku was asking, he wasn't going to like what came next.

"It… uses vibrations to make the strings produce a sound so that… it becomes possible to… to… Ah!"

When Joshua paled as he realized what was going to happen, Neku allowed a laugh.

"N-no… Neku, please no!"

But Neku wasn't listening as he struck one of the bedposts with the tuning fork. Immediately, the small instrument started to thrum in Neku's grip as the two ends vibrated almost impossibly loud. Joshua tried to move away, but there was nowhere for him to go, and Neku's other hand was keeping his hips pinned to the mattress as he moved the madly vibrating instrument along his skin.

"N-Neku please sto-" Joshua tried to beg, but only moments after he did, Neku reached his groin and brought the tuning fork to the tip of Joshua's need. Or more specifically, the tip of the metal rod still poking out of it.

The tuning's fork vibrations reverberated through the metal rod and drew an almost ear-splitting scream of pleasure/pain from Joshua's mouth. The ageless boy's eyes very nearly rolled all the way back in his sockets as he screamed and thrashed helplessly on the bed against the waves of pleasure ripping through him, since the rod was still aimed dead-center for the spot that had made him see stars before. He barely heard Neku's laughter over his own screams, his eyes shut tight as tears began to gather at the corner his eyes.

But that much pleasure also helped remind him of something else; Neku's seal would not let him come. His cock was actually hurting at that point from being denied to come at all, which only made his screams that much louder.

"Ne-Ne…Ne-kuuuuu…!" he wailed as Neku hit the tuning fork with his nails to keep it from stilling. "Please… no more…! Please…! Please, I-I… Aahh! Ne…ku!"

Neku fell silent as he watched Joshua thrash about from the rush of pleasure ripping through him, with no possible hope for release. After a long moment, he shut his eyes and reached out, using his thumb and forefinger to completely still the tuning fork in one moment. Joshua choked when it stopped, gasping harshly for breath, tears still running down his cheeks even with his eyes tightly shut. And the Kyuubi just watched him with an unreadable expression on his face.

"Ne… Nek…u… Please… I… I…"

"…You, you, you. That's all the world is about, isn't it?"

Joshua blinked once and turned to Neku in confusion, not understanding why Neku's voice suddenly turned ice cold. His expression had also changed from amused to cold and dangerous, his eyes burning with a simmering fire that threatened to flare up at any time.

"Ne… Neku?" Joshua asked slowly.

But the Kyuubi said nothing as he reached for the metal rod, and without a word of warning yanked it out of Joshua's cock, making the silverette howl out in pain. The Kitsune wordlessly tossed aside the piece of metal, his tails moving busily behind him even as he finally spoke.

"As fun as that was… I'm afraid it's about time we got down to business…"


	5. Stage 5 The Punishment

_**Purification**_

* * *

><p><em><strong>Stage 5 - The Punishment<strong>_

Those words filled Joshua with a sense of dread unlike anything he had felt before then. There was something about Neku's expression that told him that, whatever Neku was talking about, it would not be pleasant.

Wordlessly, Neku climbed off the bed and undid the sash keeping his kimono together, his expression never changing as he allowed the material to slip off his shoulders, leaving him in only the dark hakama he wore under it and the pendant around his neck. Neku wasn't bulky by any means, but he most definitely wasn't skinny, either, his arms having enough muscles to allow him to hold his own in a brawl. The silver feather glowing against his collarbone seemed to emphasize just how tanned his skin actually was in comparison to Joshua's pale skin.

Josh found himself gulping nervously as one of the Kitsune's tails moved over and dropped a small object in his hand. It kind of looked like the rod he had thrown aside earlier, only it was half as long, and had a ring attached to it that was connected to the top by a small metal arch. The Kitsune didn't give Joshua the time to question it as he moved back onto the bed, grabbing hold of the silverette's need and forcing the rod inside, making Joshua scream in pain and attempt to move out of the way. Not that Neku's tails allowed him to move his lower body at all. The redhead didn't stop even as the ring slipped over the head to settle just beneath it, where it finally stopped with the metal arch pressed along the slit and Neku finally pulled away.

Joshua whimpered as he tried to catch his breath, but that was easier said than done. Especially when Neku rose up from the bed again and his tails shot forward, picking up the Composer almost easily, the 'ropes' holding his arms and legs shifting to form makeshift cuffs instead, keeping them secured together and not allowing him any leeway.

"You know, Composer…" the Kyuubi suddenly murmured as he moved to sit on the edge of the bed, scooting back until his knees touched the mattress. "It didn't have to be this way…"

Joshua blinked briefly, not really understanding what he was talking about. Not that he was given the time to think or ask about it, since he was deposited–a little roughly–facedown onto Neku's lap, his straining erection caught between the redhead's thighs, which squeezed tightly whenever he attempted to move.

"Nurgh…! Ne-Neku… ca-can't we… talk about thi–AH!" Joshua cried out when Neku's hand reached out and pulled on his hair, forcing his back to arch.

"Oh we will," Neku promised coldly. "But not now. We have some other matters to deal with at this point."

Since Neku was keeping Joshua's hair in one hand, the silverette could not see what the Kitsune was doing. So he totally missed that Neku brought up his other hand high…

**_SMACK_**

Joshua let out a startled cry when Neku's palm connected loudly with his ass, the brief hit causing a flare of pain to shoot up his spine.

**_SMACK_**

The second hit came even faster, on the opposite cheek this time, and again, Joshua let out a cry of surprise/pain.

**_SMACK SMACK SMACK SMACK_**

Any attempt Joshua could've made to keep quiet flew out the window as Neku's hand continued to descend down on his ass over and over again. The pain it caused was always brief, but the sting left behind continued to get more and more fierce with each hit. And whenever Josh attempted to wriggle loose, Neku would either fist his hand in the ageless boy's hair, or squeeze his thighs down harder on his cock. Either of those options caused Joshua to still with a whimper. He could only lay there, whimpering and fisting his hands in the sheets as Neku continued to bring his hand down on his ass.

He didn't know for long it went on, but, finally, Neku stopped. The silver haired Composer could only gasp and wheeze for breath, his ass feeling like it was on fire, and he was sure it was a bright red, too. When Neku splayed his fingers over the abused flesh, Joshua gasped, the digits feeling much colder than they should.

"Don't relax just yet… _Yoshiya_," said Neku even as several of his tails moved about once again. "I'm not through with you yet."

That was exactly what Joshua was afraid of. He tried desperately not to whimper, which was a lost battle anyway, as Neku's fingers slowly spread his ass cheeks apart.

Neku merely watched Joshua as his entire body trembled, before taking the item he had been looking for from one of his tails, not bothered by the slight clicking sound it made when the separate parts hit each other. Taking the end in between his fingers, he wordlessly placed it against Joshua's entrance.

The Composer almost jumped out of his skin as he felt something begin to force its way inside him, a highly undignified squeak ripping itself loose from his throat. He tried to move away, but Neku's tails would not allow him and kept him in place.

"Ne-Ne-Nek-kuuu… wait… no… please _no!_"

But the Kitsune refused to speak a word, focusing solely on forcing the anal beads into the ageless boy. The first bead slipped in easy enough even with Joshua's body trying to force it back out, the second, being slightly bigger in diameter, took a little longer, and by the third, and last, one, Joshua was trying madly to get out of Neku's hold, shaking his head and screaming and crying as it was pushed inside. Neku's finger pushed it even further inside, then retracted slowly, only to insert the anal plug attached to the beads in its stead.

By this point, Joshua was visibly shaking, his fingers twitching against the mattress as he whimpered.

"Ne… Neku… t-take it out… please…"

"…No."

That was all the Kyuubi had to say about it, which he finished with two hard smacks on Joshua's ass that made the silverette cry out. The hits to his already burning flesh now also jostled around the beads that were stuck inside of him and Joshua wasn't sure what he wanted to do the most right then; scream, cry, curse up a storm, or beg for mercy. Neither of which would have much of an influence either way, though.

"…You know…" Neku spoke slowly, sounding almost thoughtful as his fingers skittered along the reddened skin. "You're actually the first Composer who made me go through with my promise to 'devour' you…"

At those words, Joshua's head snapped up in surprise. He tried to look back to Neku, but the Kitsune snagged him by his hair again and forced him to face ahead of him, almost pushing his face into the sheets.

"Did you actually think I was out to get you specifically?" the Kitsune questioned coldly. "No. My 'job', so to say, is to seek out cities that have become corrupt and to confront the Composer about this fact. Then I give them a chance to fix it, and if they do, they'll never see me again." At this point, one of Neku's nails dug into Joshua's reddened flesh, making the boy yelp slightly. "You, however, are the first I've ever had to come back for."

"Ne-Neku…"

The Kyuubi merely tightened his hold on Joshua's hair and forced him back onto the bed, face down, still, as his tails moved him so that he was on all fours, face still pushed into the mattress.

"Listen very carefully, Josh, coz I'm only going to say this once," Neku hissed out in his ear, as he took a riding crop from one of his tails. The fact that he even _had_ one of those was enough to make Joshua panic slightly. "I'm going to ask you some questions and I expect you to answer them honestly. If you answer honestly, you'll get one hit. But if you lie, or if I'm not satisfied with your answer, you'll get two. And if you decide not to answer at all, you'll get three." He paused a moment to let the words sink in, before he asked: "Do you understand?"

Fearing what would happen if he said otherwise–in the event that this was considered one of Neku's 'questions'–Joshua gulped down whatever was blocking his throat and choked out: "Y-yes…"

No sooner had he said so, or Neku lashed out, striking Joshua's ass cheeks twice. Joshua let out a cry of pain and surprise, trying to move away, but Neku's tails kept him where he was.

"Didn't your mother ever tell you not to address your elders so casually?" Neku nearly roared out. "I'll ask one more time; Do you understand?"

Realizing what Neku was talking about, Joshua winced and shut his eyes tightly before responding. "Y… yes… N… N-Neku-s…sama…"

"Much better."

One hit this time, but it was a light one that hit him on the inside of his thigh. At that point, Joshua realized that Neku never _did_ say just _where_ he would be hit when he answered. Meaning it could really be anywhere… meaning he could also hit him…

"Alright… let's begin," Neku said calmly, forcing Joshua to stop that (frightening) train of thought, turning the riding crop around in his hand. "Whose responsibility is the stability of Shibuya?"

The stability of Shibuya? That was something Joshua had not seen coming.

Nevertheless, knowing what it would mean if he didn't answer, he spoke slowly. "The… the stability of Shibuya… is… is the responsibility of… of its… Composer…" Just before Neku could bring up the crop again, though, he added quickly: "N-Neku-sama."

A brief pause, and then there was one hit across his back, just short of his tailbone. Joshua wanted to breathe out in relief, but he kept it in; he wasn't out of the woods, yet.

"Correct. So, who's responsible for Shibuya if it starts to become corrupt?"

So it was about the corruption of Shibuya? But why this… game?

"If… if a city becomes… corrupt…" the silverette began, weighing his words carefully. One false word and he'd be in a world of hurt, he knew. "…then… then it's… it's the responsibility of the… the Composer… Neku-sama."

Another hit, just skimming the edge of his burning flesh, drawing a brief yelp from him.

"Very good. Change of pace; who's responsible for the humans living in a city?"

Change of pace indeed… Neku wouldn't ask that without a good reason, though, meaning that there was no way this was an easy question.

"Um… uh…"

And that was exactly why Joshua was having trouble finding a good enough answer that would please the Kyuubi.

"I'm waiting…" Neku crooned softly and Joshua winced as he heard him adjust the grip on his riding crop.

"S-s-sorry, Ne-Neku-sama…" he got out. "I… I'm just… I… I…"

'Oh god… I don't know! If I say it's their own responsibility then I'll get hit, if I say I don't know I'll get hit, and if I say nothing at all I'll get hit, too! God… what do I do?'

However, as he bit his lip, he recalled how Neku had demanded that he answered the questions "honestly". Meaning there was only one answer right then…

"I… I don't know…" Joshua choked out softly. "I… really don't know… Neku-sama…"

Joshua bit his lip, preparing for what he knew was coming, but for some reason, it took longer than the previous hits. Instead of a hit, however, Neku gave a soft hum, before his fingers lightly rested on his backside, but to Joshua, it almost felt like a hit because the 'tenderness' wasn't what he had expected.

"Alright… if you really don't know… then we'll add one more rule, okay?" Joshua blinked slowly, unsure, and looked sideways to look up to the Kyuubi. "If you really don't know, I'll explain… but it will cost you five hits. Do you understand?"

'Five…!' Joshua trembled, but as he thought on that, maybe it was the better deal, if he really did screw up royally with answers, then this would definitely be better.

"…yes, Neku-sama…"

Neku nodded once and slowly dragged his fingers down the boy's abused flesh, making Joshua whimper.

"The person responsible for the lives of the people is Shibuya… is you, Composer." Neku paused briefly to let him digest that, since Joshua had not expected _that_ option, if his startled gaze was anything to go by. "When one becomes Composer, the city they oversee, becomes their 'heart', and the people that live in it become the heart's red blood cells, keeping the heart alive and pounding. But the one who ensures that they can continue to keep the heart alive… is the owner of that heart." Neku watched as realization began to dawn on Joshua's face. "Do you understand? It's the same as with a person who both smokes and drinks. The alcohol and nicotine thin out the veins and fills the lungs and paints them black. This causes the blood cells to have difficulty getting to the heart… until their passage is blocked entirely and they can't go anywhere. And eventually…" He paused again and took a deep breath, slowly letting it out. "The heart ceases to beat."

Joshua didn't speak; he couldn't. Put so simply in front of him, he realized that Neku was right.

Shibuya… and everything in it… the one responsible for keeping it alive… the only one responsible… was himself…

"…Do you understand, Composer?"

Joshua bit his lip and lowered his head, resting his forehead on the mattress. "…yes, Neku-sama… I understand…"

"Very well… Then I will now take the agreed payment from your body."

Joshua had expected that; he nodded, then bit his lip and clenched his fists, hoping against hope that it would somehow lessen the pain.

But it didn't…

The first hit was as swift as it was hard, striking his thigh with enough force that Joshua almost feared the skin would break. The second hit was on the opposite thigh, equally hard. The third hit came down on his left cheek, the already burning flesh flaring in renewed pain and Joshua cried out. The fourth hit was on the opposite cheek, again making Joshua cry out. And the fifth and final hit, not nearly as hard but at last twice as effective, struck him right on the plug still lodged in his ass, making him let out a scream that was neither pained or pleasured but an indistinguishable combination of both.

"That will be the price every time I require to explain anything from now on. Understood?"

Joshua was, by now, gasping for breath as he struggled not to cry openly from the rush of emotion rushing through him just then. He wasn't sure what he was feeling, but the assault had left him breathless, nonetheless. Thus it took him a little time to realize he had been asked a question.

"Y… y…yes, Ne… Neku… sama…"

A light hit grazed his arm once he had responded, possibly in an attempt to console him.

'Thanks a lot, you bast… no, no, don't think that…' Joshua mentally shook the thought away. He doubted the Kyuubi could scan him, but he didn't want to risk his thoughts blurting out at random lest he feed Neku's fury.

"Now then… what have we established with these questions thus far, Joshua?" Neku asked finally.

Josh bit his lip, wishing he could somehow make this end, before he opened his mouth again. "Shibuya… Shibuya's stability, corruption, and the lives that live in it… are… my… responsibility… Neku-sama…"

Another hit. On his left shin this time.

"Good. Then tell me… what should you have done when you realized Shibuya was corrupt?"

'What I… should've done…?' Joshua frowned in thought, shutting his eyes for a brief moment, before he said the first thing that came to mind. "I… I should've… tried to fix it…?" It came out more like a question than an actual answer, however, and so it didn't surprise Joshua that that got him two hard hits across his ass, ripping a cry from his throat.

"Are you telling me or asking me?" Neku snarled out. "What should you have done?"

"I-I should've tried to fix it, Neku-sama!" Joshua blurted out in one breath.

One hit, across his back this time.

"Yes, you should've… So why didn't you?"

" I tried!" Joshua cried out almost immediately. "I swear; I did try! But I couldn't! I did everything I could but I couldn't save Shibuya! I swear!"

No sooner had he finished or two swift hits descended down on his ass.

"No, you didn't," Neku snarled venomously. "You didn't try; you simply gave up!"

"No! I didn't give up! I-"

Neku didn't even allow him to finish this time and lashed out twice more, making Joshua cry out.

"If you had seriously tried everything, there would have never been the need to destroy Shibuya! I told you; you're the first Composer I _ever_ had to come back for! Out of all 400 Composers I confronted in my lifetime, YOU were the only one I had to return to because you couldn't stop Shibuya's corruption!"

"…!"

"You say you tried your best? I don't… no. I _can't_ believe that! Why else would you have decided to erase Shibuya? You simply gave up when you believed there was no way to save it!"

Five hits… even harder than last time.

Tears streamed down his face from the pain, but also from shame as Neku's words penetrated his skull, echoing over and over again.

'Had I… given up… so easily…? Why… why did I…?'

Silence filled the room for a long time, before Neku finally spoke again.

"Do you understand now? The cause Shibuya became corrupt… the reason why it was unable to recover… It was all your own fault. You were the one who let Shibuya become corrupt to the point where you even considered erasing it. It was all you. Do you understand?"

"…y…ye…yes… Ne…ku…sa…ma…"

He had always felt sure of himself when he claimed that it was the people in the city that had caused its corruption, that there had been nothing he could've done to save it…

But that had been exactly what had caused the corruption; his own negligence had almost caused his beloved city to disappear forever.

Suddenly, there was an almost gentle touch on his head, Neku's nails lightly weaving through his hair as the Kyuubi moved to whisper in his ear. "This may surprise you… but I have a friend who believes that the heart… is like an unborn child. You can try to kill yourself as much as you want… but that 'child' inside your chest will keep fighting to live. It will keep pounding, screaming, and crying until you stop and listen… listen to its wordless pleas to live…"

Joshua remained deathly still, panting as his tears continued to roll down his cheeks. Neku's fingers moved through his hair almost tenderly, as though the Kitsune was attempting to comfort him.

"Were you honestly… thinking of killing your baby?"

Joshua couldn't answer immediately. The way that the question had been asked, the way the Kitsune had phrased every word… it brought down everything that Joshua had done… what he had almost done to Shibuya… to his…

"Oh god…" he choked out, gasping for breath as he struggled to stop himself from openly sobbing. "Wha… why did… why did I…"

"Sssh…" Neku whispered tenderly, placing a small kiss to Joshua's temple. "You understand now, don't you? Why I'm really here, ne?"

Sniffling, Joshua slowly nodded his head. It wasn't so difficult to understand now;

Neku had never intended to destroy Shibuya. His goal all along had been to push Joshua into action and force him to realize that Shibuya had become corrupt through his own fault. And then, instead of struggling to restore Shibuya, he had given up on the city that had become his heart… and in that aspect, he had done exactly what he told Neku he should never do…

_"Give up on yourself… and you give up on the world…"_

Joshua shut his eyes, trying to prevent any more tears from leaking from them. He couldn't believe he had been so… stupid. That was probably why the Higher-ups hadn't made a peep about what he had done five years ago; they knew that Neku would come for him once five years had passed. The reason that Neku was here was simple;

His punishment.

"I'm sorry…" Joshua whispered, trying his best not to sob. "I'm so sorry… please… please forgive me…"

Josh couldn't see it, but Neku's expression softened as he continued to thread his fingers through the ageless boy's silver locks. The Kitsune remained silent as a string of apologies and pleas for forgiveness came from Joshua's lips, but finally, he realized that it had to stop and he gently shushed Joshua again.

"Sssh, Josh. Ssh… Joshua… you know why you're being punished… so you should also know you can't be forgiven so easily…" Joshua tensed in slight alarm as Neku moved back. "Now, let's finish this… For everything you've done wrong, you'll receive ten hits. However, I expect you to keep count. If you lose count, you have to start over. Do you understand?"

Joshua bit his lip, realizing that he had no choice. He'd made his choices, and they'd all been wrong ones. And now he had to pay the price.

"I… understand… Neku-sama…"

Neku merely nodded once and walked to stand behind the Composer, running his nails along the silverette's back. "Let's recap all you did wrong, shall we? Your first mistake, was to not realize that Shibuya's corruption was your own fault. Keep track of how many hits you'll receive."

"…t…ten…"

"Then… instead of trying to fix Shibuya, you decided to destroy it."

"…twenty…"

"You balanced the fate of the city on a Game, and you were willing to sacrifice the life of a child to ensure your victory…"

Joshua winced briefly, realizing that Neku saw both as separate cases. "…f-forty…"

"And finally, you made him trust you… and then you threw that trust back in his face like it meant nothing at all…"

If Joshua had been paying attention, he might've noticed how Neku's breath had hitched briefly upon speaking that last sentence. "…fifty…"

The Kyuubi watched the boy for a moment, before he took a deep breath and hardened his expression. "Ready?"

'No…' Joshua bit his lip, not really trusting his voice right now, so he slowly nodded.

**_SMACK_**

"Guh!" Joshua hissed in pain as the riding crop descended upon his abused flesh once again. "…o-one…"

**_SMACK_**

"T-two…"

**_SMACK_**

"T-three…"

**_ SMACK SMACK_**

"F-four… f-five…"

Joshua choked on a sob as Neku kept lashing out, but obediently kept count with every hit, as hard as it was with the now almost constant burn coming from his ass.

'Please… please let this be over soon…!'

* * *

><p>But it did not end as soon as Joshua had hoped, and there were some points where he feared he would actually lose count, but he held on, somehow…<p>

With every hit, however, Joshua began to realize bit by bit just what he had been doing wrong and began to realize that, more than anything, this was what he deserved. He had been a horrible Composer, and, if possible, an even worse person, betraying the very people who all worked so very hard to keep Shibuya–his heart–alive. They certainly didn't remember that, but there was a handful of them that _did_. They had trusted him. Had trusted him to keep Shibuya alive and keep it pounding for as long as possible, and what did he do? Threw it right back in their face by trying to end it.

He realized that at about the twentieth hit, and ever since the realization had collided with him like two bullet trains smashing together at full speed, tears had begun rolling down his cheeks from his eyes, and he couldn't make them stop.

By thirty, he had begun to sob and beg in-between hits for forgiveness while struggling to keep track of the number of hits he'd already endured. His entire body was trembling like a newborn lamb's, his forehead pressing down against the mattress as he sobbed both in pain and shame.

And finally…

**_SMACK_**

"F…for'y…ine…" he slurred out through his pain and sobs, his hands fisted in the sheets.

Neku watched him for a moment longer, before he wordlessly dropped the riding crop and walked around Joshua. "…Baka," he said simply, and brought down his hand onto Joshua's head in a light karate chop.

"O-ow…" the Composer hissed out, not having expected to get hit on the head so suddenly. However, he was wise enough to choke out "fifty" before Neku could claim he'd lost count.

Wordlessly, Neku sat down on the edge of the bed, watching Joshua as he struggled to catch his breath, tears of shame still running down his cheeks to land down upon the mattress. The redhead just remained where he sat for a long moment, before he brought up his hand to rest it on Joshua's cheek lightly and brought his head up so the Composer could face him properly.

Joshua almost flinched at the tender touch, but he slowly opened his eyes, looking up into the Kyuubi's dark blue eyes. Somehow, they seemed almost kind, but Joshua wasn't sure if it was real or just an illusion. But before he could ponder it too much, Neku brought his face up and connected their lips together again. This wasn't the same as the first kiss the Kyuubi had given him; this one was little more than a soft touch against his mouth, tender and almost caring. He blinked his eyes slowly, before he let them fall shut entirely, until the Kyuubi moved back again.

"You're a first class idiot, you know that, Josh?" Neku questioned solemnly.

Joshua wasn't sure what Neku was talking about, but he wasn't allowed to ask, as just then, one of Neku's tails moved around and rubbed up against his need, making him cry out in surprise. And the second he did, Neku crushed their mouths together again, this time forcing his tongue in and swirling the slick appendage all through the boy's mouth.

And then, one by one, all of Neku's remaining tails moved into action while the Kitsune used both his hands to keep Joshua's head in place. Two tails came around to move the tips in circles around Joshua's hardened nipples and flicked at them at irregular intervals, two more played along the inside of his thighs, while one tail fondled his balls and the last one began to push and pull on the plug still stuck in his ass. And the Composer could only whimper and wriggle in Neku's grasp, realizing to his embarrassment that, even though he had just gotten both spanked and whipped like a child who had just done something awful, he had never once lost his hard-on.

Finally, though, when breathing became an issue, Neku pulled away, a string of saliva connecting their mouths together, before a cruel smirk appeared on the Kitsune' face and his eyes seemed to shine in the dark.

"Don't tell me you thought I was done with you, Yoshiya…" he murmured softly with a cold chuckle. "I told you… I'm going to _devour_ you…"

Joshua whimpered as Neku moved to lick along his neck, the Kyuubi's long tongue coating his neck with saliva in no time. And all the while, Neku's tails continued their, by now frantic, movement, driving Joshua to such pleasure that he was afraid he'd black out.

"Ah…ah… Ne… Nek… Neku-sa…ma…! Ahhh… please… please let… let me… ah…"

However, as he spoke those words, Neku frowned lightly as he pulled back. "You, you, you… is that all you think about, still?"

"H…huh?"

"Did you ever stop to think…" Neku murmured softly in Joshua's ear as he picked up the ageless boy's bound hands and placed them over his own groin, "that there might be _others_ who might just feel a _little_ uncomfortable?"

Joshua sucked in a breath, feeling his cheeks flare in embarrassment, as he could feel the Kyuubi's obvious desire even through the loose cloth of his hakama, while Neku chuckled icily.

"So… _Yo~shi~ya_… what are you going to do about this little problem you caused?"

Josh opened his mouth to try to speak, but instead of words, a low moan flowed out as Neku's tail gave a particularly hard rub against his cock. The Kyuubi was still smirking evilly, but Joshua couldn't bring himself to care even if he'd been able to see it (since the fox's head was still half-buried in his shoulder). His entire body now felt like it was about to burn to a crisp because of the heat, but he knew that he couldn't make that end; not with the seal still keeping him from reaching what his body was begging for by this point.

"I… I…" Joshua had to swallow the lump in his throat twice before he was able to get even a single coherent sentence out, and even then it was hard to focus with all of Neku's tails moving against his body, still. "I-I'm sorry, Nek-uuuu-s-samaaa… Plea… please let… ah! Let… le… let me he… nnh! H-help… you…"

"Oh?" Neku actually sounded intrigued at Joshua's 'offer' and moved back to look Josh in the eye. "And how do you think you can 'help' me?"

Panting, delirious from pleasure, Joshua wasn't even thinking anymore as he spoke. "Please… ha… Ne… ku… ha… sa… ma… let… let me… s… s-suck… you…"

The Kyuubi actually looked surprised at that, his tails pausing briefly in their movements, but Joshua couldn't care. His body was begging for release and he was prepared to do whatever he needed to do to get it. And if that meant having to deal with Neku's own "problem"… so be it.

Finally, the fox's tails continued their delicious torture as his mouth curled up into a scary smirk, his eyes darkened with lust. "Is that _really_ what you want?"

What kind of question was that? "Y-yes…"

**_SMACK_**

Joshua let out a cry when one of the Kitsune's tails came down on his ass.

"Yes, **_what_**?" Neku snarled out furiously as he grabbed a handful of Joshua's hair and pulled sharply.

'Oh shit…!' "I-I'm so sorry, Neku-sama!" he wailed out. "I meant to say 'yes, Neku-sama'! Please! Please forgive me! Please!"

The redhead listened to the boy's pathetic pleas for forgiveness for a moment longer, before his mouth curled up into a smirk again. "Just this once… I'll forgive your little slip-up… but if you forget again… you'll wish you were never even born. Understand?"

"Y-yes, Neku-s-sama…"

"Much better…" Neku purred, briefly licking his lips. "And, because you've been so obedient, I'll let you suck me."

In any other situation, Joshua would've shrunk away from the very concept. But that was when he wasn't being tortured with as much pleasure as he was at that specific point. So, instead of shrinking back in alarm and/or disgust, a small, trembling smile passed over his lips. "Ah… th… thank y…you… Ne… Neku-sa-ah!-m-ma…"

The Kyuubi's only response to that was a cold, evil grin.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Longest stage thus far... If everything works out the way I want, this story "should" be finished by the next stage, which I hope to finish this week. Though I'm actually considering adding more to it... but I'll leave that to you readers once I get to it.**


	6. Stage 6 The Purification

_**Purification**_

* * *

><p><strong><em>Stage 6 - The Purification<em>**

"So, got everything you need, Boss?" Hanekoma asked casually.

"Hmmm… yes, I think I do. Thanks a lot, Sanae. At least now these silly things won't accidentally blow up in the Players' faces, ne?"

The barista allowed a small chuckle. "Yeah, wouldn't want to end the game to end early due to flawed merchandise, would we?"

"No, we would not. Well, I'd better get going then. Oh, and Sanae?"

"Yeah?"

"Could you do me a big favor and keep everyone out of the Room of Reckoning for the time being? I really don't wish to be interrupted while I work these last kinks out."

"Sure thing, Boss."

"Thanks a bunch. Toodles."

If Hanekoma could have seen the foxy grin that spread over the silver-haired youth's face as he turned away, he might've started worrying or suspecting something. But the copy did what it did best; imitate to the point where no one could tell the difference between real and fake.

'Hihihihi…perfect… Master can be pleased with me… Now, to finish the last part of my mission.'

* * *

><p>"Curl your lips over your teeth," Neku instructed softly, one hand threaded through Joshua's silvery locks as the Composer ran his tongue over Neku's cock. The boy gave a short nod and did as he was told before slipping the fox's member into his mouth. Said Kitsune let out a hiss of pleasure as he did, his fingers tightening just slightly. "Oh yeah… just like that… mmm…"<p>

Joshua felt his cheeks flush bright red at the noises that Neku was making, slowly moving his head further down until he came to the point that he was afraid he'd choke. Neku was both long and thick, and the silverette's jaw was already starting to hurt from how far he was forcing it open. He tried to push more of the Kyuubi's need in, but suppressed the need to vomit and backed up quickly. Neku's hand kept his mouth on him however.

"Don't force yourself… use your hands if you can't take it all," he whispered, reaching out briefly and removed the cuffs from Joshua's wrists with a simple flick of his nail.

Though a little startled at the fact that his hands had been freed, Joshua quickly nodded (as best as he could) and reached out with his hands, balancing his weight upon his elbows. One hand he placed around the base of Neku's cock, the other rested on his thigh to offer some extra support.

"There you go…" Neku chuckled huskily, his breathing only slightly louder and heavier than before. "Now suck it."

Joshua obeyed the command almost immediately, his cheeks denting in from the suction he applied. The Kyuubi moaned in response, shutting his eyes softly while lightly tugging on the silverette's hair. The Composer took this as a sign to move, so he did, moving his head up until he only had the head in his mouth, then dipped back down, his hand following close behind.

"Mmm… aaah… use your tongue more…"

Taking the command/advice to heart, Joshua stuck out his tongue, moving it across the skin of the cock trapped in his mouth, pleased with himself at the satisfied moan that rolled out of Neku's mouth. He had never done this before, but he was learning fast. Neku was guiding him with soft words of encouragement, quiet orders telling him what to do just right, simple instructions even he could follow. But really, all Joshua needed to know he was doing things right were Neku's pleasured moans and deep breaths as he buried both hands deeply into Joshua's hair, his body curled over his head and breath mussing up his hair even more than his hands were with their death grip on his scalp while his eyes were scrunched shut tightly, sweat beginning to roll down along his cheeks. He found the spot that Neku had mentioned earlier that some people claimed was most sensitive, somewhere just below the head and when he licked across it a little too roughly, the Kyuubi would let out _the_ sexiest moan that Joshua had heard thus far from his throat, enticing him to do that again, preferably at a point when Neku wouldn't expect it.

If he had actually been thinking logically, he would've been appalled by what he was doing, but as the situation was right now, he was too far gone to even bother to care about it.

After a brief moment of hesitation, he brought forth his other hand as well, running the pads of his fingers along Neku's balls, drawing a rather startled gasp from the Kitsune.

"Sh-shit… you pick up fast…" he wheezed out, barely getting a chuckle out before he broke off with another moan. "Ah…! N-not so fast… ngh!"

'Ah… but you seem to like it just like that best… don't you?' The thought flittered through Joshua's mind before he could stop it as he sucked long and hard, drawing another deep, guttural moan from Neku. His tails had ceased their ministrations long ago, and they now occasionally waved about and lashed out at air, trembling and fluffing out until they were at least twice as thick as they were supposed to be. Watching Neku like that, he couldn't help but feel like some of his control was slipping back, but just as he was about to play further on that, Neku released him with one hand and moved further over Joshua's body.

He only had the time to blink once before he let out a muffled cry when Neku's fingers pushed down on the plug in his ass, forcing it deeper until it almost disappeared entirely inside. However, Neku didn't allow him to bring his head up to object, his other hand keeping his head down as a low chuckle rumbled from his throat.

"Don't think I'll just hand you a victory like that, _Yoshiya_," he crooned, pulling the plug out until only the tip was left in and then shoved it back in roughly, striking the first bead it could reach, which ricocheted into the second, which collided with the third, which in turn struck him right against his prostate. This in turn made Joshua scream around Neku's need, drawing a rumbling groan from the Kitsune, even though he was still smirking evilly. "I expect you to swallow soon, Composer."

Though unsure what Neku meant, Josh would get his answer to the unspoken question soon enough. The Kyuubi changed his grip briefly on Joshua's head and pulled him down just as he was about to go up, his body shuddering briefly. Josh was about to blink, when something hot, sticky and rather bitter filled his mouth suddenly, making him want to gag and pull away, but the fox kept him where he was.

"Swallow."

Joshua wanted to say no, wanted to pull away and ignore the order and just spit the disgusting stuff out, but Neku's grip was insistent and kept him in place. So in the end, he had no choice but to obey, and he shut his eyes tight as he gulped down the liquid, though it took him at least 4 gulps to get everything washed down.

His body was shaking from the horrible taste left behind in his throat, even as Neku pulled him up by his hair. Somehow, he didn't vomit like he had expected he would even though he had to cough a few times, but he still kept his eyes shut tight.

"Open your mouth."

Slowly, body still shaking, Joshua let his mouth open, not daring to look and not knowing what to expect. But the last thing he expected was for Neku to swipe his thumb over his chin, and popping it in his mouth, the familiar bitter taste assaulting his mouth and making him cough and try to move away, but Neku's hand was keeping him in place.

And then his thumb was gone and was instead replaced with Neku's tongue, followed shortly by his lips. Joshua whimpered against Neku's mouth, but didn't protest. Neku's long tongue swirled around Joshua's mouth and his own tongue, occasionally tugging the other slick appendage into Neku's mouth, making the Composer whimper softly.

It felt like a short eternity before Neku finally pulled away.

"Stop making that face," the Kitsune hissed, tugging on Joshua's hair rather firmly, causing the boy to whine. "You humans always say that the best medicine always tastes bitter, so stop complaining."

"…ah… s… sorry… Ne-Neku… sa…ma…"

Neku merely chuckled and planted one last, small kiss on Joshua's lips, before he released Josh's hair.

"Turn around on your hands and knees."

Wordlessly, Joshua nodded and turned around, getting on all fours even though his arms were shaking from the effort to keep himself up. As he did, though, Neku removed the restraints on his ankles, forcing his legs to spread wide, drawing a slightly startled cry from Joshua. The silverette was wise enough to keep quiet though.

However, when Neku almost leisurely began to pull the plug out, followed shortly by the beads attached to it, he almost whimpered. Hell, maybe he did, he really didn't know anymore.

And then the last bead was out and Joshua gasped in slight relief, feeling his entire body tremble. But he knew that Neku wasn't through with him just yet. There could really only be one reason he was made to get on his hands and knees, after all.

So when Neku placed his hands on his ass and forced his cheeks apart with his thumbs, Joshua clenched his eyes shut and bit his lip until he almost drew blood, preparing himself for the pain he was sure would come.

But it didn't.

Joshua released something that sounded ridiculously like a squawk when something wet and slippery circled around his entrance, before pushing inside. The silver-haired Composer gasped and whined as the fox began to swirl the tip of his tongue inside of him, before steadily pushing deeper inside, coating Joshua's insides in his saliva and drawing the most erotic moans he had heard thus far from Joshua's lips.

Said boy couldn't even think clearly at that point. His body was already overly sensitive from Neku's earlier ministrations, and this was only pushing him this much closer to the edge he was still unable to tip over. And even more so when the fox's tongue began to prod and lick at his prostate, making him scream and wriggle in the Kyuubi's grasp.

"Ah… ah… please… N-Neku-saaaah-samaa… please… no more… I… I need… oh _god!_" he wailed as Neku actually sucked, _hard_, making his arms lose whatever strength they'd had left and sending him face first into the mattress. "Aaahhh… Nek… Neku-sa… ma… please… please give… give me… _aaaghnnn!_"

Neku chuckled softly, moving back slowly and licking his lips, listening to Joshua's pathetic whimpers. "Give you what, Yoshiya?" he asked simply. "What is it you want from me?"

Joshua whined unhappily when Neku moved back, and even more when he realized Neku was making him say what he wanted the fox to do when he knew _exactly_ what it was he wanted. But his body demanded satisfaction and didn't let him think about it for too long.

He swallowed once, then choked out, his face beat red, he could feel it: "Please, Neku-sama… please f… fu-fuck me…"

If he could see the Kyuubi's face, he'd probably be terrified of the grin hat played on his face.

"Very well…"

The Composer had no time to prepare, as the Kyuubi moved in with a single move, sending a jolt of agony ripping though Joshua's spinal cord that had him screaming in pain. He clawed at the sheets as he struggled not to cry (which was a lost battle from the start), and he was almost certain the skin had actually ripped open. It certainly felt like it, at least.

"Nek-Neku… s-samaaah… it hurts! Oh god it hurts!" he wailed, attempting to move away, but Neku's hands on his waist kept him in place. "Ngh… ahh haah… N-Ne… ku… sa… ma…"

"Sssh…" Neku shushed quietly, reaching out with one hand and running his long digits through the boy's hair. "I know… I know… Just relax. Sssh… enough with the tears now, Yoshiya… Relax, and take a deep breath… go on."

Joshua whimpered/sobbed, but he did as Neku instructed and took a deep breath.

"Hold it for a moment… little longer… now let it out slowly."

The moment Joshua did so, he could actually feel his body relax, muscles loosening up at the same time. And gradually, the pain faded away, much to Joshua's relief.

"Good boy…" Neku murmured, leaning forward to place a brief kiss on Joshua's temple, just as he had done when he had comforted him right before his whipping session. "Keep breathing like that… and just relax, okay?"

Joshua bit his lip, his body involuntarily tensing up. "I… I can't… I… I can–"

"Ssh… you can, Josh," Neku said softly, once again moving his hand through the boy's hair. "Do you remember… the most important rule in the Game?"

"…most… important…?" Joshua murmured, frowning a little in thought. He was sure he knew (it was his own Game, after all), but he just couldn't remember it.

When he didn't answer, Neku moved over again and murmured only three words in Joshua's ear;

"Trust your partner."

Joshua blinked briefly, the words slowly filtering into his head as Neku moved back.

"Trust me… the pain will be gone soon," he whispered, running his hands over Joshua's back. "Trust me…"

The Composer had half a mind set on saying that there was no way he could possibly trust the Kyuubi… but there was something in the Kitsune's voice that washed all the tension out of his body. It was almost as if he… as if…

As if he actually cared…

"…o…okay…" he whispered slowly, taking another deep breath, releasing it from his lungs just as slowly.

Neku allowed a small smile, one that Joshua couldn't see with his eyes shut, before he slowly moved out. The boy tensed for a brief moment, breathing hitching, and Neku stopped almost immediately, rubbing the pads of his thumbs over Joshua's hipbone, letting him calm down before moving in again, slowly. And every time that Joshua began to tense up, Neku would pause and wait until he was able to calm down, never speaking; merely waiting.

Joshua did his best to keep his breathing even, though there were times that he bit down on his lip to try and ignore the pain, and also times where he was tempted to just beg Neku to stop, but he knew that he couldn't do that; this was his punishment, after a–

"AH!" Joshua cried out in surprise/pleasure when Neku shifted his angle and moved in quickly. He blinked owlishly for about ten seconds, completely missing the satisfied smirk the Kitsune was sporting as he moved back, before he howled out in pleasure as Neku struck that same spot again, twice as hard as before, making stars appear behind his closed eyelids. "Oh my god…! Aaah! Oh _god_… ah! Please! H-harder…! Please! Harder…! F-fuck me ha-harder, Ne-Neku-sam-_aaaah!"_

The Kyuubi merely laughed at the Composer's words, briefly adjusting his grip before slamming even harder into Joshua than before, the silverette's body trembling from pleasure as he panted for breath. He was so far gone that he didn't even notice he was drooling.

"Ah… ha… ha… f-faster…!" Joshua managed to gasp out. "Please… ah… please do it f-faster…!"

Neku smirked coldly, bringing up two of his tails and used them to grab the silver-haired boy by his wrists, forcing him back up so he sat only on his knees, drawing a slightly confused slur from Joshua, before Neku did what the boy had pleaded for. The new angle made it much easier for the fox to strike Joshua's 'feel good' spot, which wasn't hard to tell as Joshua was now crying out with every one of Neku's thrusts, his head lolling back and forth like a ragdoll's as he struggled for breath.

"Ah god…! Ne-Neku-sa-_aaah!_-ma…! Oh my go-_ha…ha… _S-so good… ah… Neku-sam_aaaah_…!"

And the Kyuubi only laughed as one of his tails moved and began to pump Joshua's own, straining erection in time with his thrusts, immediately doubling Joshua's screams.

The silver-haired Composer's mind was on overload; he could barely remember his own name right then, let alone who he was or that he would die–again–of embarrassment if anyone ever found out about this. At that point, all he could be bothered to care about was reaching the pinnacle his body so craved.

If only that damn seal would go away…!

Neku allowed a slow smirk, which then twisted into a devilish grin, before he let go with one hand.

**_SMACK_**

"GYAAAH!" Joshua screamed when Neku's palm connected with his ass again. The sudden hit left him gasping in surprise, but he wasn't allowed to question it as Neku's other hand then did the exact same on the other side. All while Neku never stopped moving.

"Do you know… what a spanking is, Composer?" Neku questioned amidst his own heavier than normal breathing.

**_SMACK_**

"A spanking…" he continued, ignoring how Joshua would cry out whenever he hit him, "is a form of punishment… for little boys who've… been really, _really_ bad."

**_SMACK_**

"Have you… been bad… Composer? Have you?"

**_SMACK_**

"Guh!" Joshua bit his lip to keep himself from saying anything, his body shuddering from the intense pleasure mixed with the pain coming from Neku's hands as they struck him on his ass. He could feel the tears coming from the corner of his eyes, but he struggled furiously to keep them at bay.

**_SMACK_**

A useless battle.

"Answer me! Have you been bad?"

**_SMACK_**

"_Yes!_" Joshua choked out with a barely contained sob. "Yes, yes I've been… bad… ho-horrible even…!" He whimpered at a particularly hard thrust, tears springing loose from his eyes to roll down his cheeks. "I-I-I've been… a h-horrible… Composer…! I-I've been re-really bad!"

**_SMACK_**

"And? Are you feeling sorry for being bad yet?"

**_SMACK_**

"Ye-yes I am!" Shibuya's Composer wailed, tears trailing down his cheeks with every second. "I-I've been bad and I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! Please… please forgive me!"

Neku allowed a small, satisfied smirk as he moved forward to rest his chin on Joshua's shoulder, the tail that was pumping Joshua's cock moving to hook around the item still pushed into the Composer's cock, gradually pulling it out until only the very tip was in.

"Are you really sorry, I wonder…"

**_SMACK_**

"I-I am! I really am! I swear I'm honestly sorry!"

**_SMACK_**

"Prove it! How can I know you're not just saying you're sorry so you'll be able to get off easy?"

**_SMACK_**

"I-I-I-I…! I-I don't know!"

**_SMACK_**

"If you don't know… then I suppose I'll just go ahead and not let you come," Neku murmured with a sadistic smirk on his face, and he almost laughed when Joshua tensed in alarm, just before he let out a howl at another smack to his ass.

**_SMACK_**

"N-no wait! Please! Please give me another chance! I-I'll fi—n-no—I'll heal Shibuya! Please! Please give me the chance to correct my mistake! _Please!_"

Neku shut his eyes briefly, his smirk widening just a bit, before opening his eyes to a slit.

**_SMACK_**

"What makes you so sure… that you can heal Shibuya's wounds after what you did?"

**_SMACK_**

"Shi-Shibuya's my… my home… my heart… my… my b… baby… I-I… _I don't want to abandon my baby!_"

Neku's hand paused a mere inch away from Joshua's flesh. His eyes were wide and surprised, his jaw hanging just slightly open, and he almost stopped moving, but he somehow kept going and allowed a small smile. Gently, tenderly, he placed the pads of his fingers on Joshua's abused flesh, making the boy whimper.

"Can you really? Do you really think you have even the slightest chance?"

"P… please… Ne-Neku-sama…" Joshua choked out. "Please give… give me another chance… please…"

The Kyuubi remained silent for a few long moments, before he allowed a smile, even if Joshua wouldn't see it, and adjusted his hold suddenly, pulling the Composer's back up against his chest, the tails gripping his arms sliding away while the tail that had hooked around the his cock finally pulled away, yanking the metal rod out at the same time, drawing a startled yelp/cry from Joshua.

"Alright, _Yoshiya_," Neku whispered softly, one of his hands moving up to rest the fingers on his forehead, just under his bangs, while the other grasped his cock. "Just this once… I'll give you _one more_ _chance_."

Joshua blinked slowly, his breathing still as heavy and fast as before, as Neku had never ceased to move inside of him. Once it fully dawned on him what Neku had said, though, a small, trembling smile came to his lips.

"Ah… th… tha… thank… you… Ne-Neku… sa… ma…"

Neku merely continued to move, his expression softening just slightly.

"Now…" he spoke suddenly, his voice dropping to a deep, husky sound. "_Come for me,_ _Yoshiya._"

The ageless boy choked as the words were spoken, almost like an order (and perhaps they really were), and his entire body tensed up, heat gathering in his stomach and growing hotter and hotter until—

"Ah—ah…Ne-Neku… guh! _Neku-samaaAAAAAAAAAHHH!_"

Joshua was only barely aware of Neku's own release, filling him up and making him feel like he was about to burn up from the inside, before his eyes rolled back in his head and he passed out, darkness enveloping him.

* * *

><p>'Ah… so warm… so comfy… mmm… I don't want to wake up just yet…' Joshua thought lazily, a small smile crossing his lips as he snuggled deeper into the cloth surrounding him, enjoying the light rocking motions that almost made it seem like… like…<p>

Like he was being carried…

Wearily (and rather unwillingly), Joshua forced his eyes open slowly, but they refused to open any further than halfway, making his vision blurry and unfocused. The first thing he noticed was that he was wrapped up in something that was really, _really_ soft, colored a deep black, and he was definitely being carried. And the mop of red hair (he assumed it was hair anyway with his blurry vision) meant it could only be…

"…Ne…ku…?"

"Hm? Oh… did I wake you? I'm sorry."

'…sorry? He's sorry… for waking me…? Wha…? Wait… why is…?'

"Wha… what are you…?"

"You'll see soon. We're almost there…"

'There…? There where?'

"You should rest… you're still pretty tired, right?"

"…mmm… a little…"

"Thought so… so rest up a little more."

"Mmm… kay, dear."

And Joshua shut his eyes again with a content smile, not even hearing Neku's grumbled "Quit calling me that…" as he went under again.

* * *

><p><em>How strange… I feel… I feel so calm all of a sudden. Like all my worries just faded away… Huh. Actually, I wasn't even aware I <span>had<span> worries. Oh well. Hihi. Guess there's a first for everything…_

_…I wonder… Neku… no… Kyuubi… what did he do to me? Really? First he beats me in a game, then he works me into a frenzy, then beats me up—well, more like spanks and whips me—and then he fucks me crazy… Really, what's up with him?_

_…but… I… why do I…?_

* * *

><p>Joshua groaned when there was a sopping wet touch to his face, twisting away to try and avoid the wet touch of whatever it might be, but it followed him and moved across his cheeks, his nose, his closed eyelids, his forehead, and then back down the same way all the way to his chin. As his senses slowly returned to him, he realized he was submerged in water up to just under his shoulders, and he also began to notice a strange, but soothing scent that permeated his nostrils.<p>

It smelled like… like…

"…_sakura_…" he whispered with a contented sigh, not seeming to care as his hair was pulled out of his face or that long, powerful fingers were busy massaging his scalp tenderly. All he could focus on just then was the alluring smell wafting in the air. He didn't even mind as the same touch from before ran across his neck, shoulders, chest, arms, and basically anywhere. The scent was just so enchanting that he forgot everything.

"Hmm… so nice…" he murmured, his body falling back a little, though it was 'caught' by another body behind him, though, really, Joshua could have cared less as long as he didn't have to think.

He heard a soft chuckle from behind him, but, again, he couldn't care.

"Being a little lazy, Josh?"

"…hmhmm…"

Another chuckle. "Heh… well, fine. Just this once. But you have to work hard to heal Shibuya, kay?"

"…mmm… kay…"

Really, Joshua was feeling lazy enough to agree to just about anything. He'd probably agree to be Neku's sex-slave if the guy wanted to ask (though that'd freak him out once he returned to his senses, of course).

But Neku didn't ask that (thank god). Joshua wasn't aware of it (much), but Neku was much too preoccupied with washing the pale-skinned, silver-haired Composer. His hands were gently but methodically massaging shampoo into the silvery strands, while his nine tails moved around his body, the fur acting as sponges and working to clean up the skin. The redhead remained silent as he worked, taking care not to let any of the suds drip down into Joshua's eyes.

And Joshua merely remained hovering between the border of sleep and awareness, blissfully unaware of where he was or why. His breathing was quiet and even, giving the impression that he was still asleep, and that was fine, really. As the Kyuubi continued to work, Joshua only gave an occasional soft hum of approval when a sensitive spot was massaged by the long, furry appendages.

After a while longer, though, Joshua's awareness won the battle (for the time being) and he slowly opened his eyes, wincing at the brightness of the room. Once he was used to it, he slowly raised his head to look around, and he found himself gazing up to the most beautiful cherry blossom tree he had ever seen.

It was huge, towering high above him by at least 10 feet, if not more, and its heavy branches swayed lightly in a light wind that he didn't feel so far down, its cherry blossoms a beautiful cherry red in favor of the traditional light pink. And all around it stood several other cherry blossom trees, though much smaller than this giant before him, but still with the same cherry red color.

"…aah… so beautiful…" he murmured drowsily, still not entirely awake yet, as he brought up his hand as though he wanted to try and reach the top like that.

And then he paused, a little confused, as he noticed through his sleep-induced mind that his skin was almost glowing. It usually only did that only when he was in full "Composer" mode, but then again, that made him look deathly pale. But this glow was a soft, tender glow that, while it was also a light white, wasn't as white as the glow of his Composer form. He didn't remember ever seeing his skin like that. Curious, he brought up his other hand and moved the pads of his fingers lightly over the skin.

"…aahh…"

He couldn't remember his skin ever feeling _that_ smooth, or soft for that matter. How strange… just what had happened while he had been sleeping?

"Move your head back," whispered Neku's voice, and he did as he was told without really thinking twice about it. Which was probably a good thing, since one of the Kyuubi's tails moved over with a bowl of water and emptied its contents over Joshua's head to wash out the shampoo from his hair, Neku's hands serving as a 'screen' to keep the water out of the ageless boy's eyes. This was repeated about three times before Neku clearly believed all the suds to be properly washed" out and the bowl was set aside and a towel was picked up in its place and dropped it over the boy's head.

Joshua almost moaned when Neku's hands came up again and began to towel off his hair, the fox's deft fingers massaging his scalp _just _right.

"…mmm… Neku…" Joshua murmured reaching up to touch the redhead's hands with his fingertips (though he actually missed the first three times). "Wh… where are we…? W… why am I here…?"

"…This is a place used for purification, Joshua," the Kitsune replied quietly, keeping his focus on what he was doing. "This place is meant to wash away any fears, doubts and worries that one might have."

"Ah… I see… is that why I feel so… so… what's the word?"

"Clean?"

"…that's the one."

Neku merely chuckled, but allowed a small nod, even if Joshua couldn't actually see it. "Just rest up. You're probably completely bushed."

"Mm… and whose fault is that, I wonder…?" he murmured softly, feeling a half-smirk playing on his lips.

Neku allowed a small chuckle. "Your own. You wanted to erase Shibuya, which you shouldn't've, and thus you invited me in."

"But I didn't erase Shibuya, now did I?"

"No." Pausing, Neku pulled the towel off of Joshua's head and tossed it aside, before bringing his hands down on the back of the ashen haired youth's neck. Joshua tensed briefly, but then Neku's thumbs pressed down on a bunch of muscles and he relaxed. "But you were one step away from doing so."

"…" Joshua thought about those words for a moment, and he wanted to shout out that Neku was wrong… but the fact was that he wasn't wrong. He really _had_ been one step away from completely obliterating Shibuya's existence. That had been the plan, after all; win the Game with Megumi, then win the one he played with Neku, and then it would've been "bye-bye, Shibuya".

But…

* * *

><p><em>"Juu."<em>

_"…"_

_"Kyuu."_

_"…"_

_"Hachi… Neku, dear, you'd better pick it up."_

_"…"_

_Joshua opened his mouth to say the next number, but his breath caught in his throat as a drop of salt water rolled out from under fiery red bangs, down, down until it fell to the ground, followed closely by several of its siblings._

_"…n…nana."_

_Why was his voice shaking suddenly?_

_Hands clenched and dark blue eyes, angled down in the angriest glare Joshua had ever seen on that slightly angular face, snapped up to meet his gaze, even though tears still rolled down slowly. A single hand reached down and picked up the silver gun at his feet, then brought it up to be held in both hands, its weight being heavier than had been counted on._

_"Roku."_

_The gun was then lifted, its barrel aimed at him and its twin that was being loosely held in Joshua's own hand._

_"Go."_

_The gun was trembling slightly. Or more accurately, its wielder was trembling. No surprise; it would be his first time actually killing a person, after all. _But he wouldn't care in the end, that much he knew for sure._  
><em>

_'Go ahead and shoot me… prove to me that I was right and that Shibuya can't change…'_

_"Yon."_

_"…"_

_"San."_

_The trembling increased suddenly, and dark blue eyes squeezed shut. And slowly… the arms holding the gun lowered and the hands gripping it tightly let go, the silver object hitting the floor loudly.  
><em>

_"…no."_

_Startled by the silent word (Josh could lip-read, but this needed no prior knowledge of the skill), the almighty Composer faltered._

_"…nii… Dear, pick it up."_

_"…no."_

_"Ichi… I'm not joking, dear. Pick it up."_

_"…no."_

_Joshua's finger tensed on the trigger, and he didn't count the last second. He wanted to wait one more moment. Just one more moment. He tried to imprint him in that split second to make him pick up the gun, but that damn Player Pin…!_

_"…Zero…"_

**_BANG_**

* * *

><p>"…I couldn't do it…" Joshua murmured softly.<p>

"I know…" Neku said quietly in return, his hands moving to the silverhead's shoulders, gently massaging there.

"…you knew all along… didn't you? That I couldn't do it…"

"Hmhmm."

"…then… why did you…?"

"Two reasons… One; I _did_ say I would be back after five years, remember?"

"Ah… yeah… and the second reason…?"

"The second reason… was because you didn't know why yet."

"…"

Joshua didn't know what to say. Really, what was there to say? He understood why Neku had said nothing now. Understood why he had done what he did;

If he had simply told him, Joshua might not have taken the words in as he should've. Let alone, Neku was right; just the thought of trying to erase Shibuya should've never had to cross his mind. He really _had_ given up on the city, believing that it was beyond saving while at that time, perhaps the one who needed to be saved… was himself…

"…I'm sorry…" he murmured softly. "…I know you probably don't believe me, but… I'm sorry…"

"I know."

"…I mean it…"

"I know."

"…stop saying that," he hissed out as Neku's hands turned into fists and he lightly kneaded the knuckles into the Composer's back. "Ugh… makes me wonder how much else you know…"

"Plenty… much like I know you're enjoying this a little _too_ much," Neku murmured softly, his voice gradually dripping into a more husky voice as one of his tails moved up along Joshua's leg.

"Wh…_AH!_" Joshua yelped, feeling his cheeks heat up in embarrassment when Neku's tail wrapped itself around his stirring manhood and began to pump slowly, getting him completely hard in mere moments. 'Sh-shit! Whe-when did that—!' "A-ahhhh…! Ne-Nek-kuuuu! C-c'mon…! N-not again… _ah!_"

But Neku merely chuckled, his tail keeping up its movement as he continued moving his hands along the Composer's back and down to his ass. "Oh? But you seem to be enjoying yourself just fine, _Yo~shi~ya_."

"D-d-d-don't call me tha—_aaaaaahhh!_"

"I'm not cruel, though…" Neku murmured. "I'm willing to let you off easy this one time…"

"Nurgh…! Wh… what's the catch?" Joshua choked out, struggling to keep his breathing under control as he had to lean back against Neku's chest for support.

"Nothing major, really…" Neku murmured, before moving over and softly whispering something in Joshua's ear.

"…!" The pale teen was sure his entire body was flushing by then. "Th-th-th-th-that's not wh-wh-wh-wh-what I'd call 'n-nothing m-major'!" he nearly squeaked out in embarrassment.

"Don't get me wrong, Josh…" the Kyuubi said calmly. "I've forgiven you for attempting to erase Shibuya… but I can't forgive you entirely… Not yet."

"A-and you expect this to-to-to make up for it?"

"Hm… it's a start, ne?"

"G… _goddammit!_ Do I even ha-have a choice in this?"

"Hmm… I guess not."

Joshua wanted to snarl at that point, but he was cut off as Neku's tail tightened around his member, making him suck in his breath sharply. Biting his lip, he shut his eyes tight and tried to fight the emotions rushing through him, but it was no use…

"F… _fine_! Just… just please let me… oh _god_…! Please just let me come!"

"'Please let me come… what'?"

"…oh no, Neku, please _no!_"

"Say it."

"N-no…!"

"Say it."

"_I already said no!_"

"Hmm… But you want to come… don't you?"

"…!" Joshua actually whimpered as Neku's tail sped up its movements, his body beginning to tremble visibly. "…n-nrgh! P… please le… please let me… c-come… Ne-Neku-s-sama…!"

Neku allowed a small smirk, reaching over to turn Joshua's face around. "Good boy," he purred, before connecting their mouths together.

Joshua whined pathetically, but allowed the Kyuubi to do as he pleased. As the fox's long tongue swirled about in his mouth, however, he found himself sticking out his own tongue in a weak attempt to return the favor, actually making the Kitsune chuckle through the kiss, even as his hand moved over to grasp Joshua's wrist lightly.

As Neku pulled away slowly, he whispered: "Touch it… rub it…" while he moved Joshua's hand along his stomach and down to his cock.

Unable to refuse the order, Joshua whimpered as he slowly nodded, wrapping his shaking fingers around his straining member and moving slowly, hesitantly. He let out a sound that almost sounded like a mewling kitten, and he could barely begin to think what kind of face he was making, but judging from Neku's amused chuckles, it had to be priceless.

And then Neku's other hand found his remaining wrist and guided that one as well, forcing two fingers to curl up and then gently making the others prod at his entrance, tearing a startled gasp from Joshua's throat.

"Push them in…"

Wordlessly, but flushing profusely, Joshua let one finger slip inside, whimpering as the digit touched the still sensitive skin there, before letting the other join it shortly after. He whined at the feeling of his own fingers playing with his own body, but he was beyond caring; his eyes were glassy, his body flushed, sweaty, and he was panting like a dog in heat, his head thrown back onto Neku's shoulder and drool beginning to drip down from the corner of his mouth.

And then his fingers were pushed in further by Neku's hand (still holding his wrist), and he let out a fever-pitched moan.

"Mmm… you like that… don't you?"

"Ah… ah… y… yeah… N… Neku-sa… samaaah…"

Neku allowed another chuckle, merely watching Shibuya's Composer work himself into a frenzy, before he moved to lick along the shell of Joshua's ear.

"Go ahead… _come for me, Yoshiya_," he whispered softly.

Joshua whimpered and let out a loud cry as he did just that, his world fading to black once more soon after.

* * *

><p>When Joshua opened his eyes, much, much later, it was to the darkness of the Room of Reckoning, startling him into full awareness in an instant. He had been laying across the wide armrests of his throne, dressed in the clothes he had worn when he had come rushing in earlier that day, each of them without so much as a tear. For a brief moment, he wanted to sigh and laugh in relief at that it had been just a dream, but when he found himself reaching up for his neck, he tensed.<p>

A quick glance revealed what he had already feared; a very large and very prominent hickey, some faint fang marks visible along its edges, so he made sure to cover it up properly.

What surprised him more, though, was the booklet laying on the stairs in front of him. Upon leafing through it, he could barely believe that it was all kinds of schematics meant for this week's Game – and it was all in _his_ _own_ handwriting, while he couldn't remember ever writing any of this down.

But he wasn't allowed to question it, for just then, his pocket beeped and vibrated and he tensed sharply. Slowly, he reached inside his pocket, pulling out the orange cellphone he owned and slowly flipped it open.

And as he read, he gulped harshly, his cheeks flaring bright red.

* * *

><p>"<strong><em>One new message from Sakuraba Neku:<em>**

_You can thank me for saving your little Game later, Joshua. Remember this, though; until I say otherwise, your body belongs to me._"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well... that's the end... ...or is it?**

**Like I said; I'll leave that to you readers to decide. I do have something planned, but I might separate it into different stories if I do decide to actually write them.**

**Anyway, I _do_ already have some scenes plans... but if anyone out there has any ideas on place and time for Neku to make due on his last promise, let me know and I'll see if I can work something out with it.**

**PS: Why'd I have Joshua count in Japanese? ...Honestly I don't know. I felt like it, I guess.  
><strong>


End file.
